


Our Arms Were Once Wings

by Ecchima, RiYuYami



Category: Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: (For Gabriphale), Abduction, Ace Omens, Ace-friendly, Alternate Universe - Human, Animal Transformation, Arranged Marriage, Attempted Murder, M/M, Magic, Swan Princess AU, aro-friendly, crowley is an idiot, swan lake AU, with just a small dash of Stockholm Syndrome
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-15 12:47:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 37,681
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28813650
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ecchima/pseuds/Ecchima, https://archiveofourown.org/users/RiYuYami/pseuds/RiYuYami
Summary: “I’m… I’m going to be a swan, for the rest of my life?” He asked, in a quiet voice.Crowley was still not looking at him, instead, he was scratching his neck and seemed to be looking towards the lake again.“Not… exactly. Only when the sun is out.”“What do you mean by that? Are you saying that I can be human again?”“Only at night.”--A Good Omens Swan Lake/Swan Princess au with a bit of a twist.(For the Do It With Style Good Omens Reverse Bang Event)
Relationships: Aziraphale & Crowley (Good Omens), Aziraphale & Gabriel (Good Omens), Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens), Gabriel & Michael (Good Omens)
Comments: 62
Kudos: 164
Collections: Do It With Style Good Omens Reverse Bang, Good Omens Human AUs, Ixnael’s Recommendations, Ixnael’s SFW corner, Just Enough Of A Bastard to be Worth Knowing Biblically





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! I'm your writer, RiYuYami (trashboatprince), with the fantastic Ecchima as the artist for this story for the Do It With Style Reverse Big Bang event happening here, twitter, and on tumblr. 
> 
> Enjoy~!

The arranged marriage was not going off with a decent start, that much could be said.

It had been planned for years, back when both members of the union were children. It was to establish a strong relationship between two kingdoms, and now the time has finally come to set it in stone.

However, Prince Gabriel was not prepared to deal with his future fiancé, the young Prince Aziraphale.

He had yet to really meet the other prince, but he had been informed that Aziraphale wasn’t much of a royal heir, traditionally speaking. He was known to be quite frivolous, hedonistic, his head in the clouds and his nose stuck in a book, and he was known to be… soft, in more ways than one. 

Gabriel was not pleased with any of this, shouldn’t his fiancé be prepared to rule his kingdom with a strong hand and an iron will? Or at the very least, be less into books and more into the physical activities that were better suited for an heir to an entire kingdom?

These qualities were just some of the things that Gabriel already disliked about his fiancé, another to add to the list was how he seemed to have no concept of time! 

It had been set for them to properly meet at Aziraphale’s home at four in the afternoon, for tea time, yet the prince of the smaller kingdom had not shown his face, and Gabriel only had so much patience for this…

“Sorry, sorry!” Came the cry of someone as a set of doors were opened in the large room where the meeting was to take place. Gabriel and his adviser, Michael, both turned to find Aziraphale panting, leaning a hand on a doorway, the other clutching at his chest.

“S-sorry, I didn’t notice the time!” Aziraphale looked up, flushed in the face. “No one had bothered to alert me to your arrival, Prince Gabriel, I’m so dreadfully sorry for that.”

Tardy, and uninformed by a staff that was meant to serve under him. How terribly droll this man was, Gabriel frowned, before giving him a smile that was clearly forced. “No need to apologize, Prince Aziraphale. You’re only…”

Michael pulled out their watch from their pocket, giving it a quick glance. “Half past four.”

“Thirty minutes late! Make sure that doesn’t happen again, yes?”

Aziraphale smiled nervously, making his way to his seat at the table, eyes focused more on the delectable treats sitting before him than at the man who was supposed to be his husband in a few weeks. The older man took note of this, were they sure this heir was right to be married to him? Aziraphale seemed like such a waste of space, really.

Sitting up straight and proper in his seat, Gabriel kept the fake smile on his face as Michael poured them each a cup of tea, now lukewarm. “So, it is a pleasure for you and your family to have invited me and Michael into your home, Aziraphale, though we really should be doing this at mine.”

“We should?” Aziraphale looked up from the cake he was about to enjoy. “Why is that, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Why, because when we get married, it will be at my kingdom! No offense, but this place… is not as fitting for it as my own home. I’m sure you’ll understand when you finally see it, should be soon, we’ll need to be traveling back to get this over with as soon as possible.”

Aziraphale raised an eyebrow. “You seem to be in a bit of a hurry.”

“Well, can you blame me? This wedding has been in the works since we were young, and we need to stop delaying it!” Gabriel scoffed, as if this was the most obvious news in the world. “I understand if you’re not ready, but you’ve caused three delays in the past seven years, we’re not getting any younger.”

“W-well, I do apologize for causing us so much trouble, so many things have come up..!”

“Like your trip to France and nearly getting yourself into trouble?”

“I mean… I had miscalculated my visit, I had assumed it would be a quick one, I didn’t expect what happened to, well, happen…” The shorter man shifted about in his seat, his hands fiddling with the golden ring he wore on his right pinky. 

Gabriel held up a hand, silencing the other. “Well, we can make sure things go swimmingly now, yes?”

Aziraphale swallowed, giving a silent nod. From there, Gabriel got into the more political and financial areas of their marriage contract, all while Aziraphale sat quietly, listening, and trying to eat his cake even with it tasting like sand on his tongue. 

\--

“This was a mistake!”

“I know, sir.”

“He’s useless! He had no idea of any of the things I spoke about, how is he an heir apparent?!”

“He is the rightful heir to his kingdom, the only son, he will get everything when his father passes.”

“And the marriage? What will it even do to benefit our home? This kingdom is so small, so… uhg. There isn’t much to it, the most that it provides is some agriculture, not much else. We get nothing from him out of this deal, but he gets so much from us.”

Michael watched as their boss paced back and forth in his guestroom, the meeting had ended hours ago, and dinner had been a dull affair of smiles with too many teeth from Gabriel and lots of mumbling from Aziraphale. Now that they were alone, Gabriel was finally allowed to vent about all of this, and Michael just sat there, letting their boss vent without much complaint.

“Sir,” they spoke up, “this isn’t going to benefit you in any way, shape, or form. The most you’ll get is a little extra land, and not a very good political partner… And husband, to be quite honest, he isn’t much of anything to and for you.”

The dark haired man sighed loudly, finally stopping his pacing. “And I can’t get out of the marriage?”

“Your parents and his own have written up the terms, if you go against the marriage plans, you’ll lose your popularity and favor with the people as much of this is centered on you. Which, as we both know, is not good for someone of high status, such as yourself. Technically, it’s up to Prince Aziraphale if the marriage is to go on or not, it’s all on him if he chooses to marry you, sir.” Michael frowned. “Or, you can get out of this marriage if he dies. And yes, I checked, I read over the paperwork for the marriage several times.”

Gabriel frowned deeply as he rubbed his chin, giving this some thought. “I doubt he will relinquish the wedding; his kingdom needs ours to continue being stable. They’ve had a poor harvest these past few years. But… death?”

“If he dies, you can get out of the contract and find someone else to marry to benefit our kingdom, sir.”

This seemed to get the wheels turning in Gabriel’s head, before he shook it. “No, no, I don’t know if that’s a good idea. I mean… I don’t want to kill him, I just want him… out of the way.”

“Sir,” Michael leaned back in their seat, staring at him with sharp eyes, “if… I could make a suggestion?”

“Yes?”

“What if he doesn’t die? What if he just… vanishes? Goes missing? Legally, they can’t do anything if he’s gone, and I’ll check to see if there is a waiting period to find him. If he doesn’t show up in time for the wedding, you could be free from the marriage, and with it, the added bonus of the unpopularity of a failed marriage falling on the prince that no one seems to respect already.”

Gabriel blinked, perking up a bit. “That’s brilliant! He won’t die, at least not by my hands, and we can end this without any trouble! But how would we go about doing this? He might be useless, but his people will notice that he’s gone and might look for him. Probably more out of obligation than anything else, but it’d still be a thorn in our sides.”

“I have an idea for this, don’t worry. I just need to get in contact with someone, I know a magician of sorts that would be very helpful to this plan.” Michael shrugged, but noticed the look that crossed their prince’s face. “Is there a problem?”

“Magic? Are you sure? I know it can be more trouble than it’s worth, if things don’t go the way they should…”

“Don’t worry, the person I know is a professional.”

“I’ll take your word for it. Go, figure out what you can have done, and if they don’t want to do it, promise them a hefty reward to remove Prince Aziraphale.”

His right hand man nodded, standing up from their seat to leave the room without another word.

\--

Michael was the sort of person who knew all different walks of life, especially ones one wouldn’t expect them to ever associate with. 

Case in point, a magic user by the name of Beelzebub.

Beelzebub was a dangerous and powerful magic user, one who was often contacted in order for revenge plots and who was the one you called upon for the less… glamorous jobs that those of the upper hierarchy might need here and there during their reign. A job asked of Beelzebub could range from simple theft, or all and out murder that was made to look like a conviencing accident. 

They were also good at scamming people, who was to say that you were going to get everything you thought you’d get in the deal you were making? Did you honestly not read the fine print of the deal? And what makes you think that it would be them who would be performing the magic, can’t always be working, sometimes the assistants have to have something to do.

This happened to be the case for Michael’s proposition to Beelzebub. The sorcerer thought over what they had been told, the plan that Michael had come up with in order to get Aziraphale out of Gabriel’s hair, and made a decision.

“It can be done, but only if one of my assistants does it.” Beelzebub sighed, more in annoyance than anything else, glancing about their home, as if looking for something. That, or they were doing it to show how little they cared to do this mission. 

Michael was aware that this sorcerer didn’t work alone. Often, if Beelzebub didn’t want to do the task themself, for any number of reasons, they would have one of their ‘assistants’ help take care of the job. More often than not, these were the ones who did the work, commissioned to act out the orders of the contracts. They ranged from all sorts of normal to unsettling folks, each one capable of doing what needed to be done to make sure the job was performed well. Beelzebub didn’t like mistakes and their people were aware of this.

“One of your assistants?” Michael frowned. “Can this person be trusted?”

“Trusted well enough. He’s… busy, at the moment, but in the morning, I will tell him all about your problem prince and let him know what he needs to do.” The sorcerer spoke, almost with a strange buzz to their words. “The plan will be explained to him, I’ll allow him to do his work and take care of this Azira-whatever his name is for you.”

This seemed like this was the best that Michael would get, reaching for the pouch of money they had brought with them, handing it to Beelzebub to get their payment out. “And you’re sure this assistant of yours will be able to take care of Prince Aziraphale? Keep him away long enough to break the contract?”

“Do you want the guy out of sight or…  _ out of sight _ ? I’m good with either option, really, but one costs more than the other.” Beelzebub asked, looking up with a raised eyebrow. “Three hundred for the first option, five hundred for the second.”

“Whichever is deemed best, I don’t care.”

“Out of sight it is then.” Beelzebub scoffed, tossing the mostly-empty pouch back at Michael, who caught it with ease, knowing that no matter which options, Beelzebub took the five hundred worth of coins. “Pleasure doing business with you, sweetie.”

Michael gave the other a harsh look before excusing themself from the small, dank home of the sorcerer. They approached the horse they had borrowed to make the short journey, noticing something moving along the ground. They jumped away from it, seeing that it was the tail of a long, black snake, slithering towards the underbrush near Beelzebub’s abode.

“Uhg, this place is just wrong…” Michael mumbled, getting up on the horse before riding back to the kingdom. 

\--

“Crowley.”

The individual in question looked up, seeing his employer staring at him with cold, tense eyes. “What can I do for you, Beelzebub? Got a job for me? Need me to tell Hastur off? That one’s always gonna get a yes from me.”

They didn’t appear amused so Crowley stopped. “I’ve got a job for you.”

“Did it have to do with that person from last night? What rich bastard needs to be dealt with this week?”

Beelzebub held out a sheet of paper. Sure, they could just tell Crowley the job, simple as that, but it’s easier to have it written down so he’d remember to do everything correctly. He was excellent at his tasks, but he could be forgetful and let mistakes slip in.

Crowley looked at the sheet of paper curiously, taking it to read over his instructions. “It’s nothing too bad, just someone who needs to be taken care of,” Beelzebub started, “but you have to make sure that things go according to plan. The one who commissioned this had come up with the details and needs everything to go right, can’t have you making mistakes.”

“Why me?” Crowley asked as he continued to read over the instructions, frowning deeply in thought over how he was to do this, it wasn’t too difficult, but it involved horses, and he hated dealing with them.

“Because I trust no one else with this. Now, get going, wait until the time is right, and make sure that you do this job correctly, or else it will be all on you, Crowley.”

“Yes, Master Beelzebub.”

\--

The first thing Aziraphale noticed when he woke up was that his body was a bit cold, but also… damp?

The second thing he noticed was that he was clearly not where he had been before he blacked out. It appeared he was somewhere in a wooded area, but not on the road nor in the carriage. What exactly happened? The last thing he remembered was that he was going to do a tour around his family’s land with Gabriel, something the other prince had suggested.

The ride had been awkward, boring, and not something Aziraphale had wanted to do at all! He had been content to spend the day in the library, he had been interested in finishing the book he had started two days ago, even though it had been the reason he was late for tea when meeting Gabriel. 

He hadn’t been able to finish it yesterday, having been forced to join his fiancé in exhausting games of sports. The older man had been insistent that Aziraphale learn, seeing as they were to be wed and Gabriel prided himself in living an active life out on the grounds of his own home, so Aziraphale should as well. 

Aziraphale was the exact opposite in that regard, he’d rather be comfortable in his study or the library, reading one of his books or studying whatever had caught his fancy. Hell, he had even planned on just hiding away with a delightful cup of cocoa and those wonderful jam-filled cookies the cook had prepared this morning.

Instead, he had ended up being ‘invited’ to tour the kingdom with Gabriel and his always-present advisor coming along for the ride, what a way to ruin a day.

Well… no, that didn’t ruin it. It had been something else. 

From what Aziraphale could recall, the carriage had come to a stop, causing some minor confusion. Michael had then informed Gabriel of some strange tracks, leading into the forest, possibly a creature that would be an excellent bit of sport for Gabriel to hunt. That seemed to catch the older prince’s attention and he grabbed for his gun, apparently having decided to take it with him, not that Aziraphale would have put it past him to do something of the sort, considering yesterday. 

Aziraphale didn’t bother getting out, nor did Gabriel ask for him to, leaving him behind to wait. Michael, who had offered to drive the carriage for them, even abandoned the young prince to wait alone as they trailed behind Gabriel. 

However, he hadn’t been left alone for long. Someone had emerged from the dark forest, running towards the carriage. The stranger threw open the door and was fast enough to cover Aziraphale’s mouth before he could even cry out in fear at the sudden shock. 

Aziraphale never saw the figure’s face, cloaked by a dark veil, but he remembered them being dressed all in black, before they threw something at him that quickly caused him to black out.

The prince huffed, moving to rub at his face at the phantom sensation of the strange dust that had struck him, only to stop, looking at what he had thought was his hand. There was no hand there, no golden ring on his pinky either, no, it was just clean, white feathers.

Blinking, he moved it, then gasped, realizing that it was what his hand was supposed to be! He looked to his left one, finding another wing. “What in the world!?” He spun around, trying to look himself over, and so many things tried to click into place at once.

The reason why he was cold and wet at the same time was due to resting on top of a body of water. And he was only floating on it due to whatever had happened to his body! He couldn’t help the horrified shout that erupted from him, sounding more like a honk than a scream, as he realized that he had turned into a bird of some sort.

“Hm, don’t know why I expected a different reaction, but this seems like the proper way to react to such a change, yeah?”

Aziraphale turned sharply, nearly losing whatever sort of balance he had on the water’s surface, flapping his new wings in alarm. “What?! What-who…!?” 

He looked every which way, until he spotted someone sitting on the shoreline. There was the person in black! Only this time, Aziraphale could see the stranger’s face. He looked to be a man a few years younger than himself, with the most wild, red hair he had ever seen on a person. The stranger also appeared tall, skinny, and the grin on his face gave him a cocky attitude that he clearly wanted Aziraphale to be aware of. 

Aziraphale felt himself burning with anger, especially at the blasted, humored smile on the man’s face that only seemed to grow when he noticed the prince’s temper flaring. “What did you do to me, tell me at once, you… y-you…”

“Me what, prince?” The man asked, even more amused than before.

“You fiend!” He finally sputtered out, trying to swim towards the kidnapper. He had to be, yes? Would explain some of the situation here, but not everything. Still, Aziraphale  _ would _ get answers, even if he had to fight for them! 

“Fiend, huh? What’s that make you then, an angel in comparison?” The man asked, leaning back a bit, tilting his head as he watched Aziraphale’s poor attempts at figuring out how to swim. He, luckily, didn’t make any comments about that, Aziraphale really didn’t need that hanging over his head right now.

“Don’t try to be cute, you rapscallion! Tell me what happened to me, why am I a duck!”

“Swan.”

That correction did not ease Aziraphale’s nerves, in fact, they made them more frazzled than before. “I don’t care! Tell me why I am a bird, and what exactly happened!”

The man waited until Aziraphale had finally made it to the shoreline, waddling up to him with a look that seemed to make the stranger try to hold back a laugh. “What’s so funny?” Aziraphale huffed.

“There’s something really funny about how angry you look while you waddle like a duck. It’s kinda cute- ow!” He yelped, backing away after the swan swiftly nipped at his leg. “Rude!”

“The rude one here is you! Now…” He paused, waiting for a response that he hoped the other would figure out.

“Crowley.”

At this, Aziraphale gave a nod. “Crowley, yes, please explain to me what the hell is going on!” He honked loudly; his feathers ruffled as he puffed up with anger.

Crowley, as the other seemed to call himself, just looked at the prince, though it was hard to tell with the dark glasses he was sporting. “I can’t really tell you everything.”

“And why not!”

He gave a halfhearted shrug. “I was paid to keep quiet. Well… technically, I was paid to kill you.”

Aziraphale gaped at him, sitting down on the grass, stunned. “K-kill…? Who would want me dead?”

Again, Crowley shrugged. “I really don’t know; I was hired through my boss. They told me that you needed to be ‘taken care of’, which I assumed was murder. And look, that was an option, the main one actually, but I couldn’t do that, so I just kidnapped you.”

“Well,” the swan spoke, “I appreciate you not ending my life, but what does that have to do with me being a swan, exactly?”

“Oh, you were pretty much dead weight when I knocked you out and tried to take you out of the carriage. I couldn’t exactly drag you away either, so I just…” Crowley wiggled his fingers, “magic’d you into a swan, much easier to carry.”

There was a beat of silence and Crowley probably discovered in that moment that swans could have deadpanned expressions. “Did you even give that plan any thought?”

“… Spur of the moment, your highness.” He had a sheepish grin on his face and Aziraphale rolled his eyes.

“Can you change me back? I would very much like to be human again.”

A look crossed Crowley’s face and he turned his head away, looking at the lake. “I… can’t do that right now. The spell is a tricky one, yeah? Can’t just change you back all willy-nilly, like it’s done with a snap of my fingers.”

The prince blinked and stammered, taking this all in. He was stuck, as a swan? And had been kidnapped to boot? Oh, oh no, what was he to do? He couldn’t go home like this; he couldn’t even fly away! Look how badly he did at swimming, there was no way he’d be able to fly! And magic was not something he was familiar with, sure Aziraphale had read books on it, but it wasn’t something he had studied extensively, nor was he a natural at these things, he wasn’t a magician, despite his love of parlor tricks.

And, of course, who was going to believe that this was really him? He was a swan, for someone’s sake! Yes, it appeared he could speak, but with magic involved, people would think this was some joke! No one would believe that this waterfowl was really the heir to the throne!

Aziraphale was stuck like this, and he doubted whoever had hired a magic user to kill him would allow for a counter-spell to happen!

“I’m… I’m going to be a swan, for the rest of my life?” He asked, in a quiet voice.

Crowley was still not looking at him, instead, he was scratching his neck and seemed to be looking towards the lake again. “Not… exactly. Only when the sun is out.”

“What do you mean by that? Are you saying that I can be human again?”

“Only at night.” Crowley nodded. “Look, it’s hard to explain, magic is a tricky thing, no pun intended. Basically the spell has it that during the day, when the sun is on the lake, you’re a swan, but at night? When the moonlight falls upon the lake’s waters, and you’re in that light, you’ll become human again until sunrise.”

Aziraphale wanted to comment, say something about what a ridiculous spell that was, but there was a tone to Crowley’s voice that caught his attention. He knew what this spell was, the effects of it, in a way that seemed to bother him. Aziraphale wanted to pressure him about it, but he chose not to. “I see. Well, at least I’m not a swan forever, though I have two questions. Why do I have to change with the sun and moon shining on the lake? And is there a way to break the spell?”

“Sometimes spells, curses, enchantments and so on, they have connections to locations and objects in order to work. In your case, it’s the sun and the moon’s light on the nearest body of water to match a swan, seems it’s this lake. As for your other question…” He grit his teeth before breathing sharply through them. 

“I’ll look into it.” The redhead mumbled, standing up, dusting off his clothes. “Look, I’m gonna go and pretend that the job is done, that you’re dead, and then I’ll bring you something to eat. You probably won’t like what’s swimming around in the water, at least for a while, instinct will kick in. It’ll make swimming easier, you might like eating bugs and water plants, probably flying when you give that a shot, I wouldn’t do it today though, don’t want you crashing.”

The prince watched him make his way towards the trees, quick to try and follow. “Wait, wait, Crowley!” He shouted. “What am I supposed to do? I can’t just stay here by myself!”

“It’s better for you to be here, prince. People want you dead or missing, for some reason, and if you want to live, stay here until things settle down, alright? I’ll be back soon, just keep quiet, people aren’t gonna react well to a talkin’ swan.”

He had a point, and Aziraphale realized that he would have to lay low, for a little while. Crowley was hired to kill the young prince, which meant that people wanted him gone. It appears that in order to stay alive, Aziraphale would have to stay here at the lake and play the part of a swan. With a sigh, he nodded, waddling back towards the lake. “Do hurry, dear boy, please.”

Why was he even trusting the man who did this to him to return? What did Crowley get out of this? Why would Aziraphale even bother hoping that Crowley would return with food, or at all? Maybe it was simply due to the fact that only Crowley knew where he was and what happened to him, even though he was the cause of all of this. He had even spared his life, at the cost of transforming the prince. 

Maybe it was because, despite all that, there was something… oddly trusting of Crowley, it was strange, Aziraphale couldn’t explain why he felt that he could actually trust him to return.

Crowley looked at the concerned bird, giving a small smile. “Don’t worry, I’ll be back long before the sun sets. Ciao.” He threw him a wave before vanishing into the dark forest, leaving Aziraphale alone at the shore of the lake, stuck with thoughts over what had happened today and what will become of him due to it.


	2. Chapter 2

Crowley hated that the plan had been practically flawless, except for the transformation spell, that had not been in his instructions, but what Beelzebub didn’t know wouldn’t kill them. Nor himself. Hopefully.

What might kill him was the horse he rode, the creature clearly trying to get him off her back every chance she took, but Crowley wasn’t letting that happen. 

Of course, he had to make sure he didn’t go flying into the bushes or landing head first into the dirt, it required a lot of effort to just hang on for dear life! The horse had already tried throwing him off four times since he had gotten on her back, and years of experience had taught him that a hell of a good grip kept one from dying, or making an ass out of oneself in front of anyone who saw. Such as right now, when the horse let out a snort and got up on her hind legs, trying to drop him.

“Oh no you don’t!” Crowley hissed, wrapping his arms and legs tightly around her until she dropped back down, giving another snort, before letting him continue to walk her to their destination. This was horrible, awful, horses were the worst things on Earth! 

But he had to remember, this was all part of this stupid, stupid plan! And he thanked whoever would listen to his silent prayers that he didn’t get bucked off before he arrived at the home of his master.

As gracefully as he could, he slipped off and approached the door, just about to give it a good knock, only for it to be swung open by someone. He looked at the face of one of his associates, Hastur, who just gave him a nasty look. “You’re late.” The froggish man spoke and Crowley pushed past him.

“There was no real time to be back, Hastur.” Crowley waved a hand listlessly before spotting Beelzebub, seated at their desk, looking over some papers, probably more jobs and tasks. “Master Beelzebub, the deed is done.”

He removed something from his pocket, placing it on the desk.

It was a golden ring, molded with angel wings on either side of a shield, a lion in the center of it. It was Aziraphale’s symbol, from what Crowley had gathered when he had removed it from his finger before he turned the unconscious man into a swan. He had to bring back evidence that he had performed his mission, to show that the prince had abandoned the carriage, and the gold ring was a perfect choice.

Well, that, and a missing horse, which he noticed Hastur had gone out to take somewhere. Probably was going to sell it for a good price, no need to kill the beast, she was in perfect health and would make for an excellent sale.

“This from him?” Beelzebub asked, lifting up the ring, looking at it in the sunlight coming through the window.

“Yes, from what I know of Prince Aziraphale, it is a family symbol, one for the heir apparent.” He didn’t know, this was just a guess. “To have lost the ring, or to have discarded it, shows that he has run off. Or was kidnapped, whatever his people will make of him missing. What of the other two that he had traveled with? There weren’t any instructions on how to deal with them, so I just left them behind.”

Crowley didn’t speak of his thoughts on them, he felt like that they left on purpose, but then again, he had no idea if they were part of this whole scheme or not. Maybe they were meant to alert Aziraphale’s kingdom he was missing? After all, someone had to, right? 

“Don’t worry about ‘em.” The sorcerer replied, setting the ring aside, before leaning back in their chair. “You did well, but where is he?”

Crowley adjusted his glasses, keeping a perfect poker face. “Done away with, he won’t be a bother to the customer anymore.”

“Excellent.” Reaching into a drawer in the desk, Beelzebub removed a small bag, holding it out. “Here’s your cut of the pay, now, get outta my sight.”

He snatched it up, pocketing the coins, he would have counted them then and there, but he knew better than to do that in front of Beelzebub, didn’t want to make his boss look like a cheapskate. Crowley gave a small salute and turned on his heel, making his way out. Well, from the sounds of it, his master had no plans to dig deeper into the details of the job, so Crowley was free to keep Aziraphale alive.

He really didn’t want to kill the guy, he wasn’t a fan of getting blood on his hands, and besides, what exactly had the prince done to deserve death anyway? Crowley kept to himself, never dealing with the affairs of the kingdoms, he didn’t know all the details of the lives of royalty, so he was clueless as to what Aziraphale had done to put a target on his back.

He could ask the swan when he returned to the lake, but he doubted that Aziraphale knew the details himself.

Still, best to not keep the young royal waiting, Crowley had promised him food.

\--

Swimming was becoming a bit easier for Aziraphale as he moved along the water while he waited for the crimson-haired kidnapper to return.

Sure, it was trial and error, but a few ducks had made their way to the lake and it only took a few minutes of observing the other birds to really help Aziraphale along. He had also discovered what Crowley had meant when he said he shouldn’t eat what was in the lake. He hadn’t had something since this morning, and had grown hungry, and watching the ducks nibbling on green plants under the surface of the water had him curious…

And then utterly disgusted, it tasted dreadful! He wasn’t doing that again!

With a sigh, Aziraphale continued to paddle around in the lake, taking in the area, trying to keep his mind from returning to his worrying thoughts of his home. He was clearly still within his own kingdom, this lake had to be in it, they hadn’t gotten towards the borders during the carriage ride. Plus, he doubted that Crowley would have been able to take him to another territory in just a few hours so easily.

Aziraphale also figured that if anyone was looking for him, they wouldn’t bother with a lake, he wasn’t known to really be into nature and come all the way out here for… whatever reason they would come up with.

Pausing, his worrying thoughts caught up to him, and Aziraphale wondered what had become of Gabriel and Michael. Crowley mentioned nothing of them, but then again, the subject of those two wasn’t brought up at all either. Well, when he returned, Aziraphale would ask the magician what he had done to them!

“Oh, where is that man? It’s been so long…”

He heard something, off near the shoreline, it sounded like someone talking to themself. Perking up, Aziraphale tried to peek over at the trees and shrubs, seeing someone approaching. The black clothes and shock of red locks had him excited for a second, before trying to stifle a laugh. Crowley had returned, as he promised, but seemed to be struggling with trying to remove leaves and twigs from himself.

“Goodness, what happened to you?” He asked aloud, catching his kidnapper’s attention.

“It’s not easy trying to get over to this lake!” Crowley shouted, shaking his head, trying to knock out any leaves. “Also, I tripped- don’t laugh at me, bird boy! You wanna laugh at the guy who brought you treats?”

This really got Aziraphale’s attention, making him quickly swim over to land as he tried to keep his laughter to a minimum. “Well, seems you’ve improved your swimming.” Crowley commented as he set a parcel down on the ground before taking a seat.

“I had a bit of help from some ducks.” The prince replied, shaking himself off, before approaching, nudging the pack with his beak. “What did you bring?”

He was gently swatted away. “Hey, wait a second, your highness, let me get it out first!” Crowley scoffed, opening the parcel up to start spreading out the contents he brought. There was a wrapped up bit of cheese and meat, along with bread. Two apples followed these items, along with a knife. 

“Am I alright to eat these?” Aziraphale asked, curious. He hadn’t much experience with swans, outside of a few that he had seen on his family’s property. “Will I get sick?” 

“You’re still human, you should be fine to eat them. If not, I brought some berries if that’ll help.” Crowley answered, picking up an apple and the knife, working to skin the fruit.

Aziraphale sat himself down, looking at the bits of cured meat and cheese, though the bread looked the most delicious. He felt the urge to peck, and he gave in quickly, making work of the tasty loaf as Crowley quietly watched, an eyebrow raising over his smokey lenses. Aziraphale stopped, feeling rather embarrassed to be watched, before turning his head. “Has anyone taught you that it is rude to watch others eat?”

“Nope, no one taught me any of that nonsense. Go back to eating like a bird.” He smirked, setting aside the apple peel before working on making slices out of his snack. Aziraphale hissed at him in annoyance, which clearly didn’t affect the human, before snatching a piece of the peel. 

They sat there for a bit, quietly eating, before Aziraphale finally broke the silence around them. “How long will I have to hide here? When will I be able to return home, Crowley?”

Crowley made a noise, shifting a bit where he sat. “I can’t answer that.”

“Your vagueness is really not making me comfortable,” Aziraphale mumbled, “why can’t you tell me things clearly, why are you keeping me in the dark?”

“Because I can’t tell you right now,” Crowley replied after a moment, “it’s not safe.”

“But when will it be? Can you at least tell me that?”

He got a head shake. “It will be safe in due time, but right now you have to wait before I can take you home.”

Aziraphale stared at him, feeling an uncomfortable ache growing in the pit of his stomach. “When… you can turn me back into a full human? Maybe?”

Crowley looked back at him, it was so hard to read his face, but there was a nod this time, at least. “Yeah, then. You can go home when I can turn you back to your normal self, this I promise you.”

“Oh, I do hope that’s soon.” The prince sighed softly, picking at a few crumbs that laid in the grass. “I need to go home soon, there’s someone waiting for me there.” Well, he doubted that Gabriel was really waiting for him, but he’d like to think that his fiancé was at least somewhat worried about him. 

Just a little, hopefully.

“What, you’ve got a princess waiting for you or somethin’?” Crowley asked, popping one of the berries he had brought with him into his mouth.

Aziraphale took one for himself before replying. “No, a prince, actually. I know it sounds a bit silly, two princes getting married, but this has been planned for a long time, and it’s important for me to marry someone who can help keep my family’s land steady. I’m sure you’ve noticed we haven’t had the best harvests in the past few years, yes? So, the marriage is important, we will be providing for one another.”

“What else do you get outta this deal and what does he get?”

“W-well, I get to make sure my home is still my home, I suppose. Though Gabriel said I’ll be moving back to his kingdom when we wed.” Aziraphale sighed once more, resting his head on the ground. “And he gets good trading from my kingdom. I suppose that’s about it, I do not really know what I can do to really… provide for him?”

“I’m sure there’s something, but don’t worry about it now, you’ve got other things on your plate.” Crowley shrugged, leaning back on his hands. “Such as someone wanting you dead, and, ya know, being a swan and all.”

“I guess.” He huffed, shaking his feathers a bit. “However, you said I will be human again, when the moon is out?”

“Yeah, your appearance depends on sunlight and moonlight, it’s… a weird side effect of the spell.”

“Have you used this spell before?” 

Aziraphale noticed that Crowley suddenly appeared rather flustered and the man flopped backwards on the ground, resting his hands on his stomach, making another strange sound. “Ngk.” 

“So… is that a yes?”

“Yeeeaaahhh… once, a variation of it, not one of my favorite spells to use, gonna change ya back as soon as possible, ask me something else.”

The swan rolled his eyes, alright, he doubted that this specific topic would go anywhere right now, so might as well go back to the previous one. “Is the transformation painful?” 

Crowley shook his head. “‘s weird? F-from what I’ve been told. You’ll know when it’s starting. It’s… hard to describe?”

“I… guess I’ll be finding out shortly, the sun is beginning to touch the horizon.” Aziraphale spoke, nearly squawking in fright when Crowley let out a sharp yelp, sitting upright. He looked at the sky, seeing that, yes, the sun was beginning to set. Had he really taken so long to report to his master and get food for the prince? 

“Shit! I’ve got to go-!” He scrambled to his feet, dusting himself off. “I’ll be back tomorrow in the morning, I’ll even bring a cake or something!”

Aziraphale got up as well, watching him curiously. “Are you alright, dear boy?”

“I’m fine! I just… have to meet up with someone before sundown, sorry. Would love to stay and chat, but we can do that tomorrow.” Crowley moved towards the trees, turning around to give him a little wave, before he was out of sight.

“Alright! Uhh… if you could, would you mind bringing me a book or two, for tomorrow? It’ll give me something to- oh, he can’t hear me.” The prince stayed at the shore, unable to see Crowley anymore, meaning he was all alone. Even the ducks were gone, there wasn’t even the sound of a frog.

Aziraphale was normally someone who didn’t mind being left alone, but only when he chose to be. Such as when he was in his study, or in the library, or even the occasional stroll through the family grounds. But when he was left alone like this? He felt so anxious, he started to pace. It was times like this that he wished he had hands to wring…

But there was nothing he could do, he couldn’t just wander into the forest after Crowley, he was probably long gone by now. And Aziraphale was dreadful with directions, he’d get lost so easily! And with nightfall, he had to stay near the lake in order to be human.

All he could do was wait.

With this on his mind, Aziraphale slipped back into the waters of the lake, swimming around to keep himself distracted as he looked at the sky. The sun was nearly gone, the moon was rising, and Aziraphale followed its reflection on the water. When would it work? Was Crowley wrong about the moon changing him?

Oh, he sincerely hoped Crowley wasn’t lying to him… it would break his heart if he was to be stuck like this even at night.

He came to a stop, looking up at the moon, silently wishing for the spell to work, until he felt something odd, as if he felt it in his very soul. It was a strange warmth that started to spread throughout his entire being. Aziraphale looked himself over, before seeing that he was resting in the reflection of the moon on the water’s surface. He watched in wonder as the water began to shift, move, and rise around him. 

The warmth was all over Aziraphale, inside and out, as he too started to rise. There was a ringing in his ears as the water moved around him in the air. It seemed to wrap around him as he was blinded by a beautiful light, engulfing him within the shell of water.

It felt like it went on for hours, but it was just seconds, before it ended. The light faded and the water lowered back into the lake. Aziraphale felt the warmth slowly leave him as he watched the magic begin to calm down.

He felt normal, he felt like… himself.

Gently, he patted himself down, feeling the fabric of his clothing he had been wearing earlier in the day. He felt his shoes and socks being soaked by the cold water at his feet, and Aziraphale glanced up, seeing that he was still under the moon’s beautiful light.

“It worked?” He asked no one, looking down at his hands, finding his fingers and palms, no feathers at all. He frowned, noticing that his ring was missing, oh dear, had he lost it earlier when he was knocked out? Maybe Crowley could find it for him, or it was still in the carriage.

Still, Aziraphale smiled to himself, feeling so much more at ease now that he was himself once again. It was only for as long as the moon was out, but it was better than nothing.

As he stood in the lake, he never noticed that someone had watched the transformation before slipping off into the darkness. 

\--

Crowley felt the urge to throw something, to scream and shout and act like a child who didn’t get their way.

But he wasn’t going to do that, he couldn’t do that, and besides, he was an adult, that would be silly. However, his anger and embarrassment were strong, getting the better of him. He couldn’t believe that he nearly slipped up so easily, Aziraphale almost saw!

And then… to come back!? Why did he think it was such a smart idea to return to the lake, rather than just leaving him alone? Was it curiosity to see him transform under the moonlight? Did Crowley just want to see how it worked for him when earlier in the day, turning him into a swan hadn’t been nearly as beautiful to watch?

Or was Crowley really that worried about a prince he barely knew?

He shouldn’t bother with this, it wasn’t part of the job and he never stuck around after he finished with one, it would only cause him trouble.

And yet… Crowley thought as he slipped into his home, was it so bad to be worried? Aziraphale seemed so out of his element, he would die out there if left on his own. His life would have been easier if he had just done his stupid job, he couldn’t kill someone who looked like the worst thing he’d ever done was lie about stealing tarts, he was just so… soft!

And, Crowley hated to admit, he meant that as a compliment way more than as an insult.

“You’re getting soft yourself, you fool.” He told himself as he moved about his small home, thinking the day over. “You never get involved with jobs like this, why is he different?”

Was it because of the spell? Crowley hadn’t meant to use that particular spell on him, especially since he still had yet to figure out how to remove it from a person. It wasn’t like Crowley to actively curse someone with a transformation spell, it was just… when he tried to take an unconscious Aziraphale with him, Crowley thought ‘he’d be easier to carry if he was a bird or something’, and then he was distracted, he swore he thought the other two who had traveled with the prince were returning! And in his panic… he stupidly cast the spell without giving it more than a few seconds of thought.

Still, Crowley didn’t want Aziraphale to be trapped as a swan by day, man by night, it wasn’t a good way to live. However, it was better than the original plan for him, Crowley wouldn’t be able to look at himself in the mirror if he had harmed a person like Aziraphale.

He knew little of the man, but it was clear that Aziraphale wasn’t the sort of person that one wanted killed, so why him? Why did someone want him dead and gone? Or, at the very least, mysteriously out of the way. Aziraphale was just a soft, silly man who seemed a bit snobbish and posh, but was kind in his own right, seeing how he seemed to put up with Crowley’s nonsense today, so why the desire for him to die or be out of sight? Who would benefit from this? 

With a loud, drawn out sigh, he crawled into bed, he just wanted to sleep for a hundred years, forget about all of this and the guilt that was starting to eat at him.

All he wanted to do was tell Aziraphale what the plan was, let him know why he was hired to remove him from the picture, but even the redhead didn’t know all the details. It seems things were kept vague for a reason, and he felt like it had to do with the client.

With those thoughts on his mind, Crowley decided he would have to do some investigating tomorrow. He’d go into the city, see if there was any news about the missing prince, find out people’s opinions on the guy, and learn why he was to be taken out, especially before an important wedding.

But that was to be dealt with in the morning. For now; Crowley needed to rest, tomorrow was going to be a very busy day.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: mild fat shaming towards Aziraphale

Getting into the city was easy, it wasn’t like he wasn’t allowed in, but Crowley couldn’t help the uneasy knot in his stomach as he moved past the early morning people, bustling about, ready to sell their wares and customers moving this way and that to get what was needed.

He adjusted the glasses on his face, moving this way and that around stalls, pretending he was just out to do some normal shopping, but he kept his ears open for any news about the prince he had at the lake.

It didn’t take long before that beautiful morning gossip turned to the topic of Aziraphale, and Crowley listened in carefully. He found himself at a vegetable stand, pretending to examine two tomatoes to see which one would be worthy of his purchase, though he was actually half paying attention to his task, as he heard the owner of the stand speaking to a woman a few feet from him.

“So whatcha think ‘appened to ‘im?” The stall owner asked, leaning on the counter of the stand.

“Personally, I think that the prince just ran off!” The woman scoffed, clucking her tongue. “It was only a matter of time, keepin’ to himself up in the castle all day, never botherin’ with us folks down here.”

“And what makes you think he ran off?” Crowley found himself asking, turning to look at the two.

The woman shrugged. “Cause he’s useless and he knows it! Why else is his father still on the throne, should have passed on the crown ages ago! But I don’t blame ‘em for stickin’ around so long, that prince ain’t a prince, could never rule much less the kingdom itself!”

“You speak as if you know him.” Crowley frowned, fingers twitching.

“Aye, I work in the kitchen! All he ever does is laze about, actin’ like he’s better than us cause he never has to lift a finger! Always finding some excuse to sneak into the kitchen, taken from it all willy-nilly, and the cook let’s him! ‘s got a soft spot for the fat bugger!”

Crowley kept a poker face, just giving a quiet nod, before making his purchase. As he passed by the scullery maid, he snapped his fingers and the bag she had been using to gather her groceries suddenly tore, all her purchases falling to the filthy ground. He told himself it was due to her nasty attitude, that she could have been correct in her harsh words, but that was still pretty damn rude. 

Not that Crowley didn’t hate his own employer as well, but he wouldn’t be so open about it.

Alright, so, a staff member didn’t like his apparent lazy nature and him being a food thief, those were not reasons for him to die. Also, if Crowley would like to comment more, her excuse for Aziraphale running away was poor, sounded like she didn’t even know why he did. Probably just pulled that nonsense reasoning out of thin air. 

As he wandered around a little more, he listened to more gossip about Aziraphale. He found that a large portion of the townsfolk assumed he ran away, since one of the horses was gone when the carriage was discovered empty. 

Some people suspected he was kidnapped, apparently Crowley had left marks that indicated a scuffle. Now, this wasn’t true at all, it was actually just him trying to pull an unconscious Aziraphale out of the carriage as quickly as possible, and attempting to drag him to the forest. Crowley had hoped that by turning Aziraphale into a swan, there would have been less traces to follow. It probably worked too, since no one had appeared at the lake yet.

Finally, he heard a few people saying that the poor man had been killed and taken away, though there was no true evidence of that; so it seems that people were just making more and more nonsense assumptions as to what in the world happened to their heir apparent.

Crowley had found that a lot of people weren’t even worried about Aziraphale going missing or having run off, they kept saying it was for the best, that they didn’t need a ruler like him, he was useless and too much of a pushover. Selfish, hedonistic, an all-around bad prince.

Him being gone would benefit the kingdom, apparently, and that made Crowley’s blood boil, they were acting as if this was a good thing! These people were about five minutes away from celebrating from how talkative and excited they were over how Aziraphale was missing. He didn’t understand why he was growing more angry and defensive towards Aziraphale, but reflecting on his own feelings wasn’t an activity Crowley was very fond of, so he just assumed he was feeling these things in the prince’s place. 

There were a few who spoke in whispers, that this could just be a set up

Crowley had to admit, those people were rather close to the truth, but he didn’t know if this whole ordeal had anything to do with the wedding between Aziraphale and this Prince Gabriel that he kept hearing about. 

But that was just more gossip and chatter among the kingdom, another tally on the magician’s list of possible reasons for while anyone would want Aziraphale dead or missing.

And yet, it was still something that Crowley pondered on, considering how Aziraphale didn’t sound very happy when he spoke about Prince Gabriel yesterday. He might have to get more information from Aziraphale when they would see each other later. 

“Excuse me,” Crowley spoke as he approached a man sweeping the doorway outside of a bookshop, “I’m passing through town and can’t help but hear all the chatter, what exactly happened?”

“Oh!” The bookseller looked up at him. “Well, sir, it seems that our prince has vanished! It was announced by his fiancé last night. He said that he had gone missing during a carriage ride on one of the paths around the kingdom, that it happened when he had gone off into the forest while Prince Aziraphale remained behind, only for him to return to an empty carriage and a horse missing. There was evidence of a fight, so they fear something terrible happened. But that Prince Gabriel fellow said that the castle guards were looking into it, going out to find any evidence of what happened to his betrothed. What a shame, Prince Aziraphale is such a good lad, don’t know why anyone would want to take him, or why he would run off.”

“Do you… know him?” Crowley asked, a bit curious. So far, this concerned bookseller seemed to be the only person to show any other emotion outside of annoyance, curiosity, or excitement from the disappearance of their future ruler.

“Of course! Prince Aziraphale often commissioned me to find him rare books for his collection, always paid quite well for them too, and clearly loves my wares!”

Crowley glanced at the store. “Mind if I browse a bit? If the prince favors what you’ve got, it has to be worth the time to take a look around.”

\--

Aziraphale felt the warm rays of the sun on his face as he came to.

Strange, he didn’t remember the sun shining on his face from this side of his room… or for his bed to feel so hard under him…

Opening his eyes, Aziraphale did not find his familiar room, but a large body of water, surrounded by greenery and a few ducks swimming. Oh, right, he was stuck at the lake still. Sitting up with a yawn and trying to stretch, he was disappointed to find that at some point in the morning, probably when the sun rose, he had gone from being human to being a swan once more.

It appeared that during the night, he had laid down under a tree and dozed off there. Of course he couldn’t enjoy being a human for long, cursed or not, he did have to give into the urge to rest. Still though, he had made the most of his time in his true form as best as he could with such a limit to his options. 

Aziraphale had spent a good chunk of his time awake as a human wandering the whole shoreline of the lake, taking in his surroundings. When he had been left alone last night, Aziraphale had made an attempt to go into the woods along an area that appeared to be a path, considering the worn out ground beneath him, but when he tried to walk along it, it felt… wrong. Like something was holding him back, keeping him close to the lake. 

He wondered if this same, strange feeling would happen to him during the day, or if it only happened at night. Aziraphale had guessed that due to the transformation relying on moonlight on the lake, he probably had to stay close to those sources when he was human, he couldn’t just wander off without there being repercussions, right?

Seems like something he’d have to ask Crowley about when the man returned. But for now, Aziraphale would go about his day as best he could as a swan. Which seemed to involve him getting into the water and waiting patiently for his new friend to arrive. Was Crowley a friend? It would seem that he was Aziraphale’s only option for one at this point.

“Oi! Prince!” 

The loud shout had Aziraphale turning to face someone a few meters away down the shore. It was Crowley, waving an arm around enthusiastically, trying to get his attention.

“Goodness, dear boy!” Aziraphale replied as he paddled himself along the water. “There’s no need to shout like that, the whole kingdom can hear you!”

“I called out to you three times now,” Crowley spoke, dropping his arm, “you were off with your head in the clouds, so I had to yell.”

Aziraphale made a disgruntled noise and he got himself out, shaking off some of the water. “Yes, well, I was thinking about things.”

“What sort of things?”

“Never you mind, young man.” The swan came to a stop, noticing that Crowley was holding a basket in his other hand, effectively taking Aziraphale’s attention away from the magician. “What’s in there?”

Setting down the basket as Crowley took a seat on the ground, he opened it up for Aziraphale to take a look. The swan peeked inside, seeing an array of treats from fresh vegetables to a small tin that clearly had biscuits inside. He also spotted something else and he gave a happy flap of his wings. “You brought a book? You heard me last night?”

“‘course I did.” Crowley lazily waved a hand before removing the book, setting it down on the ground for him. “You asked rather loudly, I got the message. I didn’t know what you like, but the bookseller said you were a fan of novels.”

Aziraphale blinked, looking up at the redhead. “You went into town? You spoke to Mr. Anderson?”

“Yeah, had to run some errands, figured I’d get your book for ya. He’s worried about you.”

“Did you… say anything to him?”

Crowley sighed, pulling out a glass bottle, a bowl, and a cup. “I asked him what he knew about all the noise in town, your fiancé announced that you were missing and apparently sent out guards to find you.” He didn’t mention that he saw no one while he made his way to the lake, he didn’t want to disappoint Aziraphale.

He poured a bit of wine into the cup before putting some in the bowl, gently nudging it towards Aziraphale who took a few laps of it with his tongue. “He was worried that something bad happened to you, but while I was in the shop, I said that you were probably safe, you’d be returned home safely in time.” He took a drink from the cup. “Which isn’t a lie, it’s just a truth with very few details.”

“And when will I be getting more of the details in your truth?” Aziraphale asked, feeling a bit smug, especially at the smile that he got out of Crowley.

“Ah, sneaky bird! It ain’t happening right now, but I will tell you soon, when things are a little bit calmer.”

“I’ll hold you to that.” Aziraphale replied before sticking his beak into the basket, making an attempt at pulling out the tin. Crowley reached in, removing it, shaking a finger with an ‘ah, ah, ah,’ like one would do with a naughty child. “Excuse me, but I’d like to see what is in there!”

“Nope, it’s for later, gotta eat a meal before you can have dessert!”

Aziraphale huffed. “I think not! There is no rule that says I can not enjoy a treat before I eat a meal!”

“Now, now, your highness,” Crowley grinned, putting the tin aside, “don’t get your feathers ruffled.” He barked out a laugh at his own, terrible joke and yelped when he got his hand nipped. “Bastard swan!”

“Wily kidnapper!” Aziraphale shot back before pulling out a bundle of grapes. “You should be treating me better than this, I am your prince after all.”

Crowley gave him a look before grabbing for his cup once more. “Not really.”

Aziraphale swallowed a grape before looking at him in confusion. “What do you mean? You live in my family’s territory, do you not? After all, this lake is within the boundaries from what I’ve gathered, and you don’t seem like the type to travel between kingdoms for work.”

“I live in the forest, Aziraphale.” Crowley gestured towards the trees. “I don’t really work under the laws of the royals, I’m basically a hermit.”

The bird prince looked him up and down. “You don’t… look like one.”

“Well, I have a nice home and such, my job pays well, I just stay out of the affairs of others, especially those higher up on the social food chain.”

“I don’t think that makes you a hermit, but call yourself what you will, my dear.” Aziraphale shook his head before returning to the treats that Crowley brought with him.

Silence fell over them, but it wasn’t awkward or terrible, it was nice. Just two individuals enjoying a late breakfast, savoring the calm until Aziraphale asked a question.

“My fiancé is looking for me then?” He asked as he made himself comfortable. “He wasn’t harmed at all in the events of yesterday?”

That had worried him a little. Sure, Aziraphale wasn’t a fan of Gabriel but he didn’t wish him any harm. Crowley tilted his head in the other’s direction, before reaching for the wine again. 

“Nope.” He said, refilling his cup. “He wasn’t part of my orders, and he and the person with him weren’t in sight. I was told to wait until I found my chance to grab you, so I had to follow the carriage for a while. Which is not easy, I mean, you’d think with legs like these that I’d be able to catch up in a heartbeat, but no, doesn’t work like that!”

Aziraphale looked at Crowley’s legs, letting out a laugh. He had noticed how the man walked, as if his center of gravity was off, or he was a bit tipsy. 

“Oi, laugh it up, feather head, you try running alongside a carriage pulled by four horses!” Crowley sniffed, gently nudging Aziraphale as he continued to laugh. “Anyway! So, when they stopped for whatever reason and those two went off, I saw my chance and I knocked you out cold.”

“And how did you even do that?”

“Knock-out powder, super easy to carry around, and much better to handle than casting a spell to knock someone out.”

Aziraphale just nodded, taking his word for it. “I see. Well, you still used a spell on me, do you do that often?”

“Using spells on people?”

Aziraphale nodded and Crowley sighed, toying with a grape before popping it into his mouth. “I do, helps me practice my magic skills, but sometimes it’s just easier to not even bother with it, you know? I had actually planned to not use magic on you yesterday, but circumstances led to me doing so. Without thinking, of course, I just wanted to grab you before they decided to come back, and apparently my only thought was ‘make the prince easier to carry’ and that resulted in…” He waved a hand up and down at the swan.

“You… really just acted without much thought? Are you seriously telling me that I’m like this because you didn’t think?” The prince gaped at him, he had thought Crowley was joking this whole time, but looking at the redhead and hearing how he spoke… Aziraphale felt a flair of anger and moved to bite him.

“Damnit!” Crowley pulled back his hand. “I’m sorry! I couldn’t exactly pick you up, have you ever tried carrying an unconscious person before, with arms like these!? It ain’t easy! And before you decide to bite me again, no, I am not referring to your weight or anything of the sort, I’m just not Hercules!”

The amount of anger on Aziraphale’s face was a clear reminder to Crowley that swans had a nasty reputation for a reason. Beautiful but so very, very deadly. “It could have been worse, my boss could have sent another person to take you out, and knowing my cohorts, you would have been killed and the body left where anyone could have seen that you were clearly dead. And trust me, no one wants to come across their ‘craftsmanship’.”

There was a beat of silence and the anger faded a little. “I… see, so if your employer had sent another assassin out to deal with me, I really would be dead?”

“Yeah. The guys I work with are devoted to their work, a little too much. Unlike myself, I always look for loopholes and easy ways to make sure I don’t go against my own morals. I don’t kill, Aziraphale, I don’t like doing that. So, you being a bird during the day is honestly the better option over death, ain’t it?”

“Oh, please don’t make me admit that you’re right…” Aziraphale sighed and Crowley laughed.

The two continued their small meal together, chatting about whatever came to mind, like if ducks have ears or not, and even discussed if Aziraphale would attempt to learn to fly. He had finally mastered swimming just fine, even bobbing under the water for fish and plants, though he didn’t care about doing that when there were tasty treats waiting for him on the shore.

An attempt at flying was made, but resulted in more trouble than it was worth. Trying to run and take flight didn’t work, and Crowley tossing Aziraphale into the air only resulted in them both falling into the lake. They had decided to wait on that, maybe have Aziraphale ask the ducks for help, if he could speak to them, he hadn’t bothered trying that yet.

For now, Crowley laid on the grass under the sun, trying to dry off, with Aziraphale laying next to him, working on reading the book. He was delicate with turning the pages with his beak, and was delighted in it being a long book that would entertain him for a day or two!

As he turned a page, he looked to the human lying to his left. Crowley looked as if he was asleep, and Aziraphale figured that if he was, he probably wouldn’t be happy sleeping with those dark glasses over his eyes. As he reached to remove them, gently pulling on an arm with his beak, a careful hand brushed his face. “Don’t remove those, please.”

“Oh! You’re awake.” Aziraphale pulled back, blinking. “Wouldn’t you rather sleep with them off?”

“Gotta wear ‘em, even with my eyes closed. Sunlight hurts my eyes, really sensitive to it.” He mumbled, shifting a bit. “Do you mind if I nap? The sun’s warm, it’s pretty comfortable, and I’ve been up since dawn.”

Aziraphale gave a little nod. “Go right ahead, Crowley. I’ll just be here with my book.” If he could express a smile, he would. Crowley gave him a nod in return and made himself comfortable.

Returning to his book, the young prince got himself lost in the text, unconsciously delighted to be able to do so, just as he would have, had he been home. He didn’t even realize the time until it became a bit difficult to read. Turning his head up, Aziraphale noticed that the sky was darkening. Goodness, how time flies. 

“Ah, Crowley.” He leaned over, nudging the man in the side with his head. “Dear, you’ve slept away the whole afternoon!”

There was a startled snort and Crowley flailed his way up into a seating position. He yawned, stretching, before looking this way and that. “Hm?” He seemed to turn his attention to his companion, before realizing the approaching darkness of the evening.

“Not again…” He hissed, getting up, dusting himself off. “Sorry, your highness, but I’ve got to go.”

“You can’t stay this evening?” Aziraphale asked, a bit surprised at how disappointed he sounded.

“Yeeeaaahhh… can’t, got a… a thing, you know how it is, right? Got lots to do and such, but I’ll be back tomorrow to keep you company!”

Aziraphale tilted his head, the disappointment growing. “Why can’t you stay tonight? I’ll admit, it is rather lonely without your company here.”

“Hhhh…” Crowley moved about on his feet, clearly conflicted with the situation at hand. “I really want to stick around, but I can’t, please understand that, Aziraphale.”

There was a pleading tone to his voice that Aziraphale didn’t miss. He let out a soft sigh, giving the human a nod. “Alright, but… do be careful out there, I don’t like the idea of you traveling in the dark, who knows what lurks in these woods.”

“I’ll be fine, I know ‘em like the back of my hand.” Crowley tried to offer a reassuring smile. “I’ll be back in the morning with another book or two for you. Just wait for me.”

“I can do that. Have a good evening, Crowley.”

“You as well, Aziraphale.” Crowley gave him a wave before moving into the trees, just as the sun was reaching the horizon. 

Aziraphale sat there for a moment or two, in case Crowley returned, before slipping into the water. He did as he had done the night before, following along the reflection of the moon, until the sun was completely gone, and only the moonlight shone.

He found himself resting on the reflection, before that beautiful light and warmth overcame his body. He was still in awe as he felt the change, saw the display of magic before his eyes, until he stood in the cool waters, human once more.

“I fear I will never get used to that.” He said to himself, looking around, before he noticed movement. He swore he saw something, or someone, looking at him through bushes near the shore. Aziraphale saw what looked like eyes, reflecting the moonlight, before they vanished in the shrubbery. 

Someone saw, this couldn’t be good!

But, it could be an animal, right? There were animals in the forest, he had seen a deer come to the waters last night to get a drink, it could be just that but something in his stomach said it wasn’t an animal, it had to be someone.

Maybe it was someone out looking for him! He could let them know he was safe, he could go home-!

“Wait, wait!” He shouted, trudging through the water to get to land. He got to the shoreline and ran towards the bushes. Pushing past them, he tried to run through the trees, trying to catch whatever had seen him. He could hear rustling ahead of himself, swore he saw greenery moving, but it was hard to tell in the dark.

“Come back, please! It’s me, Prince Aziraphale!” He called out to the stranger, before he felt something jolt in the back of his mind.

He was getting too far from the lake, from the moonlight. His heart was beating so hard in his chest, that he could hear it pounding in his ears. Aziraphale looked towards the direction he had been running in, he couldn’t go further, he couldn’t leave the two elements he needed in order to be human still.

He felt an ache in his chest at the horrible reminder that he was trapped. He couldn’t go home.

\--

“Wouldn’t it be easier to meet during the day?” Beelzebub clucked their tongue, looking at the advisor, sitting upon their horse. “Don’t you think I’ve got better things to do than meet at night?”

“It would be rather suspicious of me to depart from my prince’s side when people would notice.” Michael sniffed, giving Beelzebub a hard look. “I just came for an update. I was hoping for something written, but if we must meet, well…”

“Don’t like letters, could be intercepted.” Beelzebub replied, approaching Michael, holding up the ring that Crowley had given them.

Reaching out, Michael took it gingerly, examining it carefully, as if it could be a fake. “This belongs to Aziraphale, yes?”

“Yep. My man had taken it right from his finger, gave it to me as proof, it is his family crest, is it not?”

“Yes… now, where is the body?”

Beelzebub snorted loudly, crossing their arms. Assuming death over a kidnapping? Well, they did pay for the full deal. “Not my business of what my employees do with the dead. Why? Do you want a funeral for the useless prince?”

“Not really, but it would have made things a little easier for my prince to work with, considering he’s claimed to have put on some search to make it seem like he’s worried about Prince Aziraphale. It keeps him in good graces with the people to put on an act of worrying about his betrothed.” 

Michael pocketed the ring, before grabbing for the money pouch again, handing a decent sum of coins to the sorcerer. “For your troubles, speak not a word of this if the guards come by your place.”

“As if I ever would.” Beelzebub snatched up the coins. “If you ever need my services again…”

“Pray that I won’t.” With that, Michael turned their horse away, departing quickly. Best not keep their boss waiting on the news of his fiancé.


	4. Chapter 4

The unease Aziraphale felt in the forest began to fade as he made his way back to the lake. He returned to the shoreline with a heavy sigh, looking out at the calm waters. Reaching down, he picked up a few rocks, moving to skip them across the surface, just to clear his clouded mind.

He did this a few times before he felt irritated, launching the few rocks that remained in his hand at the water, disturbing the calm around him as they landed with a rather disappointing splash. Aziraphale had tried his best to stay level headed about his situation, but there was only so much one could take in before the anger building up started to boil over.

He was surprised at how well he could handle the whole cursed to be a swan by day and human by night thing, and not knowing the full truth of the situation he was stuck in until Crowley was allowed to tell him.

But the fact that he was stuck at the lake was infuriating! Aziraphale was stuck with it all day long, the least he could have would be to be able to stay away from it at night! 

“You’re just a way to transform!” He shouted at the water. “I don’t need you after that, just let me leave for a few hours, I’ll be back before morning, I just want something else to see and do instead of wandering about in circles!”

There was no answer, his voice just echoed in the clearing. Of course he didn’t expect a body of water to talk back, but he still had every right to vent his frustrations. 

He sat down and put his head into his hands, feeling the urge to cry. He hated this, Aziraphale didn’t ask to deal with all this magic nonsense, he didn’t ask to be a target of kidnapping or murder, he hadn’t even wanted to go on that stupid trip around the kingdom! 

Or to even be married, but he really didn’t have a choice in that matter. He guessed, he could have stood his ground and came up with excuses to avoid being dragged out of the castle by Gabriel. All Aziraphale had wanted was to stay at home and enjoy his usual activities, not to be stuck here, with no one to talk to or to spend time with. 

How curious, the idea of company had never really been something that Aziraphale cared much for, but being trapped here, alone at night? He hadn’t realized how lonely he was before, when he still had his books and a comfortable chair to read them near a warm fire. Even when there were still people around his home, he’d just avoided them if he could. Yet, now that he was truly alone, the prince realized that this was something he did not care much for.

Crowley was only here during the day, and he didn’t seem interested in sticking around when night was beginning to fall upon the land. He always seemed uncomfortable and in a panic whenever the sun began to set, why did Crowley try to leave before nightfall?

Could it be that Crowley did not like the idea of dealing with him as a human? Was it because Aziraphale was a prince? There was always a certain distance, a certain coldness against those of the higher class that Aziraphale didn’t blame people for having. He had met a number of people who really took advantage of their status, but did his new associate think negatively of him as well?

It was a terrible thought to consider, but Aziraphale was a bit of a worrywart, and his more ridiculous thoughts tended to get the better of him. Crowley didn’t know much about him, just the little bits and pieces Aziraphale had told him during their small talks from the past two days, and he hadn’t bothered to respect the protocols or follow the complicated social rules he was usually subjected to. 

“Oh, Aziraphale, stop being ridiculous.” He gently slapped at his cheeks, trying to snap himself out of his thoughts. “Crowley doesn’t seem like the sort of person who cares about rules! He seems rather… laid back, actually, so he won’t be bothered by this!”

The blond got to his feet, beginning to pace. “He’s probably a very busy man. With him stuck having to keep an eye on me during the day, he probably leaves his other work to be done at night! After all, yesterday he said that he had to meet with someone, and tonight he probably had work to do! Right?”

He turned to a duck that was passing by on the water. “What do you think?” He asked, smiling, though it felt forced even to him. 

The duck just looked at him before letting out a quack.

“Oh.” Aziraphale frowned, tapping his chin. “I suppose that does seem a bit silly to be a valid reason, but it’s better than the more bothersome alternative. You’re probably right, I’m worrying over nothing.” He looked towards the basket that had been left behind. It appeared that Crowley had completely forgotten it when he dashed off, which didn’t bother Aziraphale too much. He was content with making a meal out of the leftovers, and he could share some with the duck.

Reaching into it, he pulled out the leftover grapes, carefully biting a few in half to share with the duck who seemed very happy to have a treat. “Do you think it would be wise to… get to know my kidnapper? To let him know more about myself and for me to learn more about him?”

The bird gave a quack before happily gobbling up a grape.

“Hmmm… yes, good point, I’ll have to make sure I come off as casual as possible about it. I don’t want to sound desperate! And maybe I can figure out what has him skittering off before sunset!”

There was a hiss from his feathery companion and Aziraphale pouted. “Now, now, no need to be rude about this, young lady! I’m still coming up with ideas. I will accept constructive criticism, but not with that attitude.”

The duck ignored him and returned to her treats as Aziraphale rolled his eyes, he wasn’t going to get positive opinions out of her it seemed. He looked into the basket to see what he could nibble on for dinner, before spotting the tin..

He had completely forgotten about it after Crowley had taken it away, claiming it was for dessert. Well, it was later now, wasn’t it? Surely, he could have a treat or two, depending on what was inside. He opened it up, delighted to see jam-centered biscuits. These looked just as good as the ones he’d have at home, made him curious if Crowley had asked around for what Aziraphale enjoyed, just as he had done with the book. It was so sweet of him to go through all the trouble to find Aziraphale’s little comforts.

“Maybe… I’m worrying for nothing.” He chuckled nervously, taking out one of the treats and biting into it.

It was nice to know that at least someone cared about him. But maybe his fiancé did as well? Crowley had mentioned that it seemed he sent people out to find him. Gabriel had to be worried, right?

\--

Most people thought that Gabriel was worried about Aziraphale, and they were right, in a way.

To anyone who wasn’t aware of the truth, they thought he was a very worried husband-to-be, heartbroken about Aziraphale’s disappearance. They thought that he felt guilty about leaving him behind, exposed to the dangerous people who could’ve kidnapped the prince, or Aziraphale had found his chance to run away.

But in truth, Michael knew that their prince was worried that Aziraphale would return and ruin his chance of escaping this pointless marriage, that he would be trapped with Aziraphale, and his reputation ruined.

With the worry came the guilt of relying on a magic user. It was one thing to hire an assassin or kidnappers, it was another to hire ones who used magic. 

Magic users were powerful but dangerous, even unpredictable at times. They had abilities others did not, and could use them to their own advantage. Gabriel never liked the idea of magic users, the cons of using one greatly outweighed the pros. Tales of backlash and betrayal were common when it came to those with such powers, you’d have to be desperate to request their help. There was a cruel irony to that, given the situation, but Gabriel trusted his advisor’s plan, they had never failed him in the past.

“Sir.” Michael spoke up, catching Gabriel’s attention.

“Michael, you’re back!” He got up from his seat and approached his most trusted advisor. “What news do you bring?”

Slipping a hand into their pocket, Michael then held up the golden ring. “The deed is done, I don’t know what became of him, but my… business partner has informed me that Aziraphale is out of the picture. It would seem that it would be best to just sit and wait until the time comes for you to return home and no longer have to deal with this.”

“Excellent!” Gabriel grinned, taking the ring from Michael. “Hm, what do we do about this?”

“Wait a day or two, we’ll pretend it was found. I’ll make sure things are in order for you, sir.”

“Of course you will! I wouldn’t trust anyone else with this, Michael. Just make sure that he stays gone, you never can trust magic users, yes?”

Michael nodded, bowing. “Yes sir, of course.” 

\--

When Crowley arrived at the lake the next morning, he was surprised to find Aziraphale waiting for him at the corner of the path leading to the lake. The swan actually seemed to wag his tail a bit in glee at seeing him and Crowley couldn’t help the small smile that formed on his lips.

“Morning, prince.” He greeted, giving a small wave of his hand.

“And a lovely morning to you as well, Crowley.” Aziraphale replied, getting up from his spot. Crowley noted that Aziraphale seemed a bit more excited than usual which could be a good sign.

“Seems you got into the basket last night, glad I brought extra.” The redhead spoke as he approached the open basket, looking at the leftover dishes and empty wine bottle set inside. “I had forgotten to leave you something the other night, figured I should make up for it.”

Aziraphale blinked. “Oh? You simply hadn’t forgotten it?”

“Nah, I left it here on purpose. I figured you wouldn’t be up for eating stuff from the lake. I’m gonna take a shot in the dark and guess that’s still something you’re not exactly keen about, am I right?”

Turning his head to look at the lake, Aziraphale seemed to have a very clear look of disgust on his face. “Every attempt has been… bad. I do know there are fish swimming about, but I would much rather they be cooked! And it will be a cold day in Hell before I even dare to consume an insect, no matter how good the ducks here say they are!”

Crowley raised an eyebrow at this. “The ducks? Have you been talking to the creatures around here?”

“Just the ducks, the other animals don’t really pay much attention to me. I spoke with a few of them last night when I was a human, though they mostly just listened to my chatter as I fed them grapes and bits of biscuits.”

“Heh, well, I was wondering if you’d be able to converse with animals, don’t know everything you’re capable of as a swan.” Crowley sat himself down, before removing a wrapped bundle from his coat pocket, unwrapping it to present to the swan. Just more fruit, but that didn’t seem to bother Aziraphale at all as he happily picked at it.

He watched as the prince ate before Aziraphale looked up at him, clearing his throat a little. “Well… uh, Crowley, do you mind if I ask you something?”

“You just did, but go ahead.” The magic user smirked, earning a hard look from Aziraphale.

“Don’t get smart, young man. Anyway, I was… wondering if you’d like to get to know one another. I mean, if you’re to be looking after me until I can finally return home, I think it’s only right for us to know more about each other!”

He looked up, seeing a strange look cross Crowley’s face, and he winced. “Unless you think this is a terrible idea, then forget I said anything-!”

“Sure, we can do that.”

“I mean, it is a bit silly, to want to know the person who did- excuse me?” Aziraphale blinked, doing a double take at him with surprise.

Crowley gave a shrug. “I don’t mind, Aziraphale. It wouldn’t hurt to know more about each other. I mean, I really don’t know much about you, and you know next to nothing about me, so why not? What do you want to know?”

“I, uh,” Aziraphale was a bit caught off-guard, he hadn’t considered that Crowley would accept so easily, “there’s a lot, to be perfectly honest. I really don’t know much about you, but I guess I could start with the basics.”

“Which is…?”

“Is Crowley actually your name? Sorry, it sounds more like a last name than a first.”

“Last name, first is Anthony. Anthony J. Crowley, at your service. I prefer Crowley though, if you don’t mind.” He smirked as he gave a dramatic bow.

“Then I shall continue to use Crowley.” Aziraphale tilted his head. “What exactly does the J stand for?”

The redhead gave an awkward shrug, as if he’d never been asked that before. “‘s just a J, really.”

“You just gave yourself a middle initial because you wanted to sound fancy, didn’t you? Like those people who add esquire to their names to sound more important.”

“I can’t believe a swan could be so snarky, shut up.”

From there, the two of them chatted, answering one another’s questions to the best of their abilities. Crowley learned that Aziraphale was very fond of books and was rather protective of them. Aziraphale rarely, if ever, let anyone touch them once they became part of his collection. He also collected snuff boxes, though wasn’t much for snuff itself, he just found the cases lovely. 

Although he had a wide knowledge of music, he was rather picky in his own tastes. Nonetheless, it was a safe topic for them and they discussed it at length. Aziraphale revealed that he got especially fed up with an opera that everyone kept recommending to him, pretending it would be ‘perfect for him’. Crowley found that it was a delight to be able to see the prince riled up over such a topic.

Aziraphale’s status came up at one point, to which Crowley discovered that Aziraphale didn’t mind being a prince, he just wasn’t quite ready to take on the responsibilities that his father had as king. However, he would join in on discussions and meetings, doing his best to help with his own suggestions and involvement with the kingdom. Crowley took note of this, remembering the comments from the townsfolk about Aziraphale having no interest in the kingdom, it seemed that they were wrong after all.

Crowley, for his part, shared that he was someone who enjoyed mischief, and had a ridiculous sense of humor. For example, Crowley had this odd habit of gluing coins to cobblestone paths just to watch people fail to pick them up, all for a laugh. He also shared his distaste for horses and how they seemed to loathe him back, though he couldn’t explain why that was and concluded that they were too hard on the bottocks to comfortably ride anyway. 

Crowley confessed that he had a green thumb and enjoyed keeping plants, much to Aziraphale’s surprise. When asked, he said it had nothing to do with herbal magic either, that he just enjoyed caring for them. He stated with pride that he had the most beautiful and lush garden in the whole kingdom, all due to his gardening methods, which Aziraphale found rather harsh and unorthodox.

The prince admitted that he had not expected someone like Crowley would have such a fascination in plant care. But as the saying goes, one shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. 

The magician revealed that he was also prone to long naps, calling it another hobby. Crowley also admitted that he wasn’t much for eating but he loved a good glass of wine. They delightfully found that this was a passion of sorts that they shared. Who didn’t love a glass of wine, or even something stronger? This got them into a long conversation of which wines and spirits were best, which were the worst, and what they both enjoyed over all. 

It was amazing how easy it was to talk about themselves with one another. Aziraphale had explained that he never found anyone at home who would really listen to him go on about his interests and hobbies. He didn’t really have anyone he called his friend, and talking to the staff was pointless. They just smiled and nodded at whatever it was Aziraphale rambled on about, though they clearly had no interest in whatever he had to say that didn’t concern their jobs. 

Crowley just hated speaking to the group he was associated with, and even if he did try to talk to them, it was wise to just speak about work, and keep his private life entirely separated. 

The two of them wandered around the lake as they continued their game of questions and answers. Crowley carefully kept a slower pace so Aziraphale could keep up with him and his long stride. 

“So,” Aziraphale spoke, wanting to ask what had been on his mind all morning, “have you been a magic user your whole life?”

“Hm?” Crowley looked down at him before giving a nod. “Oh yeah, lots of magic users just have this… I dunno, natural gift for it. I started my training early and became pretty good at it, but it requires a lot of trial and error! And when I mean a lot, I mean  _ a lot _ . You wouldn’t believe the number of times I messed up, or had it blow up in my face! Once, I tried out this new spell and-”

Crowley tensed up for a moment before he continued on with the story. “Anyway, it isn’t important what happened to me, but I ended up accidentally destroying the spell book. Not one of my brightest moments.” 

“Goodness, your poor book! But… were you alright? You didn’t quite say what it did to you.”

“Nothing you need to worry about, it happened a long time ago.”

Aziraphale might be a bit absentminded at times, but he wasn’t stupid, he could tell that Crowley was trying to avoid the subject. However, Aziraphale decided to let it slide, he had more important questions to ask. 

“If you say so, Crowley. But I am a bit curious, how in the world did you end up in this whole… kidnapping business you seem to be involved in.”

Crowley let out a sharp bark of a laugh before shaking his head. “Oh no, kidnapping ain’t my business. It’s just a bit of… eeeehhhh… a bit of a side thing, depends on the job that my boss gives me. Really, I’m an errand boy.”

“Errand boy.” Aziraphale repeated, highly amused by the man’s choice of words.

“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, prince. But I am pretty good at my job! And besides, my boss has a whole network of people working for them, with all sorts of ‘specialties’.” He suddenly held up a hand when Aziraphale opened his beak. “Don’t ask about it, you really don’t want to know.”

Aziraphale promptly closed his beak and Crowley continued. “I started working with my boss a long time ago, sort of got mixed up with the wrong crowd, couldn’t get out of it, so now I work with criminals. Oi, don’t look at me like this! There are lots of different criminals, I’ll have you know, not everyone gets commissioned for murder! Theft is way more common.”

The swan stopped, moving to stand in front of the human. If he could have put his hands on his hips, he would have. “Excuse me, are you telling  _ me _ , the future ruler of this kingdom, that it’s alright to commit crimes? In my kingdom!?”

“I do believe that is what I said. Stealing from people who have more than enough ‘cause some poor bugger, who also has more than enough, mind you, wanted some pretty painting or jewels? As long as they’re ready to pay the price, that’s fine with me, we thieves use the money we earn, at least! We don’t let it sit in a vault for everyone else to look at! Feels like we almost serve a good purpose sometimes, even if the methods to do so can be unorthodox.” Crowley crossed his arms, seeming to be glaring down at the prince.

“Well… just because you make it sound alright doesn’t mean that it is.”

Crowley made a disgusted face. “Ngk! It is alright! Don’t be acting all holier-than-thou with that tone of yours, prince, you’re dealing with a criminal mastermind! I’m an all-powerful magician! I’m a threat, a danger, a pain in the neck for anyone who crosses my path! I put the fear of Crowley into those who confront me!” 

“Uh-huh.” Aziraphale rolled his eyes, turning to waddle off. “An all-powerful magician and criminal mastermind who saved a prince when he didn’t have to do that. Possibly out of the goodness of his heart?”

Crowley sputtered before he started to follow after Aziraphale, surprised to see the most cocky look he had ever seen on a bird before. He couldn’t help the surprised smile that stretched his lips. “Oh… oh! You are such a bastard, haha!”

“Oh, come now, dear boy. I couldn’t possibly be a bastard.” Aziraphale replied, giving a smug little wiggle of his head.

“I suspect… that you’re at least enough of a bastard, to be worth knowing.”

Aziraphale looked up at him, “I shall take that as a compliment, my dear.” He said, marvelling at the smile on the other’s face.

\--

“So, tell me about this husband of yours.”

“Fiancé.” Aziraphale corrected as he stood on a rock, looking down at the water below him.

“Yeah, fiance. Tell me about him.” Crowley tilted his head, watching as Aziraphale lifted his wings, before reaching out to position them better for him.

Aziraphale sighed, he didn’t like the idea of trying to fly again, but Crowley had suggested that it would be wise for him to at least learn how, as you never know when you would need to make a quick escape. And since Aziraphale couldn’t run well like this, flying was his best bet..

He shook his body a little, trying to get himself ready. “Well, his name is Gabriel, he’s from France, just across the mountains, to the east, in case you’re wondering. Our parents arranged for us to be married since we were young, before we were born, really.”

“To benefit each other’s kingdoms?” Crowley asked as he backed up, watching Aziraphale step back a few feet, getting himself ready to jump off the small ledge to attempt flying.

“Yes, it’s for trade, and to help my kingdom out. We’ve been struggling a bit these recent years, so the marriage is going to be a very helpful arrangement for us. Still… it feels like Gabriel’s kingdom is getting the short end of the stick. We’re such a small kingdom compared to his..”

“Don’t sell yourself short, prince. I know for sure that your kingdom provides valuable goods through livestock, and excellent textiles from the large amount of sheep we’ve got here. Oh! And the forests! Lumber is good for the kingdom, yeah? This place is good land, and bad seasons happen, it’s normal. I’m sure things will work out well in time.”

Aziraphale sighed, nodding, Crowley did have some good points there. “Maybe you’re right about all of that. Alright, I think I am prepared for flight, shall we?”

“Then go, fly.” Crowley flapped his hands a bit, though Aziraphale chose to ignore that. He shook himself out again before running forward and jumped, flapping his wings quickly before… dropping into the water with a loud splash and a honk. The redhead didn’t even bother trying to cover up his laughter as he approached the water, holding out his hands for Aziraphale to swim into.

“You really need to practice this more.” He commented as he put Aziraphale back on the perch, letting out a shout when the prince shook himself, effectively spraying Crowley.

“I don’t see the point in all of this! In due time you’ll be able to get me back to normal and I will have no reason to fly!”

“Yeah, well, until then, you’re a sittin’ duck to anyone who finds you. So, if you need to escape, you’re gonna have to fly, your highness.”

Aziraphale would have preferred to go back to the shore and read, but Crowley was right, he really needed to learn. From what Crowley had told him, the woods surrounding the area were dangerous, and you never knew who could be lurking about.

With a loud sigh, he got back into position, closed his eyes, and made for a running start. The moment his webbed feet left the rock, he flapped his wings, though this time he focused on the sensations and not on the obnoxious flapping he had done moments ago and in his earlier attempts. 

The fact that he hadn’t hit the water made him open his eyes and Aziraphale found himself flying over the lake. He let out a delighted honk, hearing a shout of ‘wahoo’ from the shoreline. “You’re doing great, Aziraphale! Try going upwards!”

Giving a nod, Aziraphale tried to move upwards, the way he had seen his duck friends do during his time here. His flying was a little wobbly, but he was getting higher above the surface of the lake, just above the tree line as he turned, using the ascending winds and gliding ever higher.

Maybe it was his observation of the other waterfowl, or even his basic instincts due to the curse, but Aziraphale was finally flying! This was amazing, brilliant! He had never thought he would be able to do something like this before! “Crowley, I’m flying!” He called out, looking at the human.

“That’s great, keep going! Or try to land, see if you can do that!” Crowley shouted back at him.

Landing, right, he would need to learn as well. He swallowed the lump in his throat and tipped downward, hoping to go for a soft landing on the water. Aziraphale really didn’t want to crash, that would be terrible, an utter disaster-!

He felt panic rise in him as his balance shifted and he started flapping frantically in a panic as he got closer and closer to the ground.

“Whoa, whoa, hold on-!” He heard Crowley exclaim as he got closer to the shore at high velocity rather than the water, he opened his wings wider, trying to slow his descent before he slammed right into the poor human, knocking them both to the ground with a wheeze from Crowley and a startled honk from himself.

“Oh-! Oh, goodness me, Crowley…!” Aziraphale scrambled to get off him. “Did I hurt you, dear boy? I am so sorry! I started to panic and I… oh my.” 

Crowley had started to sit himself up with a low groan while Aziraphale rambled, rubbing at his chest where the swan had struck, before looking at the stunned bird. “What?”

“Your… uhh… your eyewear,” Aziraphale said, once he found his voice again, “I seem to have, well, knocked them from your face…”

It seemed to dawn on Crowley that it was much brighter out than it was seconds ago, and a quick glance about himself revealed that his sunglasses had fallen a foot or two from him. He breathed in deeply through his nose before looking back at the prince, his eyes still exposed. Aziraphale couldn’t stop looking at them. Golden with thin pupils, serpentine or maybe feline. The eyes of a predator. 

“Remember earlier, when I was speaking about the spell that destroyed my book?” Crowley asked slowly, carefully, getting a simple nod from Aziraphale. “This is the result of that.”

“You, uh, you have... slit pupils?”

“I think it’s as clear as the beak on your face, prince. And in case you’re curious, they are serpentine.” He reached over, grabbing his glasses, and put them back in place.

“Amazing…” Aziraphale mumbled, approaching as he leaned up, face in front of Crowley’s own, trying to look at them even with the smokey lenses in the way. “Are you able to see like a human, or is it much more reptilian like? I have read that they must see differently from other animals, though it is just a theory, I mean, there have been studies but we won’t really know until technology improves, or ever!”

Crowley raised an eyebrow, he had not expected curious and fascinated questions. Usually people called him a demon and ran away when they saw his eyes. “I… see well enough, though I really am sensitive to light, it can be overwhelming at times.”

“Goodness, that’s just the most curious thing! Did the spell do anything else to you?”

“Ehhhh…” Crowley waved a hand before gently pushing Aziraphale back. “Look, please don’t make a big deal of things, I’m not really good at discussing my mistakes.”

“Oh, yes, that would make sense, dreadfully sorry. And I am so sorry for knocking you over, are you alright?”

Crowley nodded, dusting himself off. “I’m fine, you surprised me more than anything else, really. Might be a little sore where you slammed into me, but it could have been worse. Still, you did pretty well with flying, but you didn’t have to dive down so fast when trying to land. You need to… ease into it, yeah?”

“I suppose that would have been the best option, I got a little carried away. But I have a good idea of this whole flying thing!” Aziraphale said, tone chipper as his tail feathers gave a little wiggle. “Though I still need a bit more practice, I think I’m getting the hang of it!”

“Looks like it. We’ll try again later.” Crowley replied, picking off a feather that had stuck to his jacket from Aziraphale’s crash landing. “I was wondering, you really didn’t speak much about your fiancé, more about the benefits of the marriage itself. Care to tell me about this Gabriel? What is he like, as a person?”

Aziraphale really didn’t want to, but he found that maybe this would be a good chance to vent to someone who didn’t know who Gabriel was. “Well, I suppose I can tell you a bit about him. Mind you, we didn’t officially meet until a few days ago, but there had been a few letters.”

He explained to Crowley that their parents had tried to get them to write to one another when they were younger, but while Aziraphale talked on and on about his studies and interests, Gabriel’s replies had always been short, limited, and more things one would say to an acquaintance rather than the person you were to wed. Aziraphale told him about their first real meeting, and how things went from there, about how they had tried to plan the wedding several times but things had prevented it from happening, and Gabriel always seemed to point fingers at Aziraphale for the delay.

“Sounds like a real wanker.” Crowley commented.

“Oh, he’s really not that much of one,” Aziraphale giggled before he sighed, “however… he is rather pushy, and insistent! Every time we were in the same room together, he always ordered me around. ‘Aziraphale, you’re not sitting up properly.’ ‘Aziraphale, you should be seen, not heard.’ ‘Aziraphale, I think only one slice of cake is enough for tea time! I know a gut is a symbol of wealth, but you shouldn’t present yourself as the richest man in the world, yes?’” He said in a mocking tone, but that last one sounded bitter. Crowley weirdly didn’t like that. 

“Ain’t his business to tell you what and how much to eat. Or even how to present yourself, he’s not your mother.” Crowley clucked his tongue.

“I know, but he is my fiance, and he wants me to look good for his people. He already has my people’s attention, and I’m sure they love him more than they love me.”

Crowley frowned at this, at the sad tone in his friend’s voice. “What makes you say that?” he asked as if he didn’t already know from what he heard in town.

“Because I’m… soft, to say the least. Look at me.” Aziraphale paused. “Well, not this me, the human me you saw in the carriage.”

The redhead took a moment to give this some thought but shrugged. “Still not seeing the problem here, so you’re a little soft in the middle, that’s not bad. You’re smart, and seem to know a lot about your royal duties, from what you were chattering about earlier, maybe your people are just stupid and like some flashy guy.”

“Oh, he’s flashy alright.” Aziraphale ground out, annoyed. “He’s all clean and sharply dressed, tall and muscular, and with a smile that I swear is like carved ivory! It’s too… fake! And he is so active, just gotta be all running and moving, trying to get me to come outside early in the morning to practice sports! He tried getting me up before dawn for a  _ run _ !”

Crowley chuckled a bit. “You sound like a child.”

“You’re the one who told me your favorite hobby is to sleep! I don’t mind waking up early, but I like doing it on my own terms, not having some… bull come busting in, happily telling me ‘it’s time to get up for a run around the ground, sunshine!’ I don’t really like running, though I do know my way around a sword, and it’s always been enough until now, thank you very much.”

“Oh?” Crowley seemed interested in this small change of topic. “You can handle a sword?”

Aziraphale gave a nod, straightening himself up. “Of course, I learned young how to fence and to fight with a number of swords and bows. However, I chose to learn to sword fight of my own free will, not because my fiancé decided I needed to learn.”

A grin seemed to bloom on the other’s face. “You don’t like being told what to do, do you?”

“And you seem like the type who doesn’t either.”

“Nope! Hate it, but I gotta do it to make a living.”

“As do I.”

“Heh, from two different worlds, but we both still have to deal with the same bullshit.” Crowley replied, highly amused, and Aziraphale found it a bit contagious. He surprisingly found himself liking Crowley more and more, maybe after all of this would be over they could continue being friends.

The swan made a pleased sound. “I suppose you’re correct. Though I must say, I haven’t been this physically active in quite some time! Look at me, swimming nearly all day long, and now flying! Why, when I change tonight, I might be a bit slimmer! I bet you wouldn’t even recognize me.” He joked and Crowley let out a nervous laugh at this.

“Yeah, I bet. Look, Aziraphale, before you ask… I have to leave again tonight, when the sun sets.”

“And what reason do you have to avoid seeing me tonight?” Aziraphale found himself saying, disappointment clear as day in his tone and on his face.

“I doubt you’ll believe me, but it’s me, that’s the reason. Can’t explain it, but you have to trust me on this, I have to be gone when the sun is setting. If I stick around…”

Aziraphale let out a soft sigh, he found himself doing that quite a lot these days. “One day, will you tell me the truth? The whole truth?” He was getting tired of how often Crowley avoided certain topics, he didn’t want to be left out of the loop, especially when it involved himself. 

Crowley looked at him for a long time before removing his glasses to show that he was keeping eye contact. Was this Crowley being serious, a small voice in Aziraphale’s mind asked. “Aziraphale, I promise I’ll tell you everything, it’s just… not a great time.”

“But when will it be a great time?”

“When… we’re both ready.”

Aziraphale was ready now, but there was a clear hesitation in Crowley’s expression and the swan realized that his new friend was the one who wasn’t prepared to talk. It seemed the waiting would have to continue then. 

“Fine, but you better tell me everything, Crowley. I’m involved in all of this, my life is in your hands now, and I deserve to know everything.”

“Yes, you do. You just… need to wait a bit longer.”

With that, the topic was dropped and Aziraphale decided to return to his flying lessons, though the subject was still on his mind. 

\--

Crowley had departed when the sky darkened and the sun vanished over the treelines, leaving Aziraphale alone once more.

Well, not exactly alone, he assumed that his watcher from last night had returned. He swore he could feel eyes on the back of his head as he drifted about in the water, waiting for the moonlight to touch him. If he was quick enough, he could catch the stranger, and ask some questions.

It all required timing, but he didn’t want to lose track of the watcher as he had last night, so once Aziraphale was himself again, he was going to break into a run even if he had to go through before the water entirely fell around him.

Aziraphale felt the familiar warmth in his core before he realized that the moonlight was upon him. He felt himself going through the motions of his transformation, blinded for a moment by the light, but he still felt those eyes on him.

Before the water fell around him, and the glow of magic dimmed, Aziraphale turned sharply towards the shore. When he was human at last, he started to run in the direction of the path where he had seen movement the night before.

Whoever or whatever was in the bushes seemed to catch onto his plan and started to move as well, but Aziraphale was not about to have that. “Oh no you don’t!” He shouted, shoving his way through the bushes, not even caring if they snagged and tore his clothes, he was catching his watcher!

If it was an animal, he could just ask if they knew if anyone was looking for him, if there was anyone else besides himself and Crowley in the area. If it was a human, he’d demand answers to what was happening in the kingdom!

The trees made it hard to see, but in the few breaks above that allowed for the light of the moon, Aziraphale saw something moving out of the corner of his eye. He took his chance and jumped, slamming down on something solid, though it was clearly alive as it moved about under him.

“I got you, you blasted-! Oh!” He blinked, realizing that whatever it was that he had jumped upon was squirming, though he still couldn’t tell was it was in the shadows. It felt rather long and smooth under his hands, he swore he felt scales. It was then that he realized that he had trapped what appeared to be a snake.

A rather large one, to be exact.

With a panicked squeak, he moved off of it, but kept a hand upon the snake’s body. “N-now you listen to me! I have questions and I need them answered! And I suggest you start talking, I know you’re the one who has been watching me transform!”

There was a low, long hiss from the snake as it seemed to shift about, the long body moving in a way that allowed for Aziraphale to see their head in a spot of moonlight. He was looking at a black snake, with a red stomach. And then he saw golden slitted eyes, the same that he had seen merely hours ago.

“Crowley..?” He gasped softly.

The snake gave a small nod. “Looks like we’re both ready, huh?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case you're wondering, Aziraphale is from Germany in this story. We weren't sure about using real life countries but it makes things easier and we felt it made the dialog more smooth. The reason behind that choice is that Swan Lake is set in Germany!


	5. Chapter 5

The walk back to the lake was too quiet, too heavy, a million questions and answers left unspoken between the prince and the snake as they left the forest.

Once in the moonlight, Aziraphale got a better look at the spellcaster. Crowley was very much a snake, though larger and longer than any that Aziraphale had ever seen in his books. This was clearly the work of magic, yet it seemed that it had been an imperfect casting.

“Well, uh,” Aziraphale swallowed the lump in his throat, eyes completely on Crowley, “where do we… start, with all of this?” He gestured to his friend as the last of his tail slipped out from the bushes.

Crowley turned his head, looking at himself, before rising carefully, head level with Aziraphale’s waist, though his golden eyes stared directly at the human. It was almost intimidating, but Aziraphale didn’t find any reason to fear Crowley, even in this form. “I’m a snake, for one thing. Cursed by complete accident. Well, by being a clumsy fool, really, but still, an accident.”

He shifted, moving along the grass to get himself up onto the rocky perch they had spent a portion of the day at. Aziraphale quietly approached him, wringing his hands together nervously. “You did this to yourself?” The prince asked.

“Yes, remember when I told you earlier about the spell I accidentally cast on myself? The one that gave me my snake eyes?”

“... Yes?”

Crowley nodded his head, as if to gesture that this was the result. “Ta… da?”

“Crowley, dear, did you curse yourself with a transformation spell?” It was a dumb question, the answer was obvious, but he wanted full confirmation. 

Aziraphale was amazed to see Crowley look utterly ashamed, he hadn’t known that a snake could be this expressive. “Look, it sounds bad, but it’s something I’ve grown used to over the years! I mean, it’s just while the sun is down, when it rises, I return to being a human during the day. And besides, this happened when I was young, I was still in the early years of my trainin’!”

Aziraphale’s discomfort must have shown on his face because Crowley continued hastily. “I was learning transformation spells, not for living beings, but objects. I should have practiced more, I hadn’t quite mastered them yet when I got the stupid idea to see if I could transform myself into an animal! I did something wrong with the spell, it didn’t work the way it should have. One second, I was standing at my workbench, the next, I was over ten feet long, knocking over the bench and making everything fall to the floor!”

He shifted around on the rock, moving this way and that, as if he was trying to pace while he spoke. “A candle fell on the book, setting it ablaze rather quickly. Happens when you’ve got something ancient and fragile like that, and I only realized what had happened at the last second. I used a spell to dump water on it, but by then… the book was too damaged to use anymore, it was practically ash! I had no way to fix or replace it. So, I panicked, tried to find something to reverse the spell in my other books, and when the sun rose the next morning, I transformed back into a human. I thought it had worn off, but my eyes were all wrong, and when the sun set that day, I was this once more. Every night since, I’ve become a snake.”

Aziraphale listened to Crowley’s ramblings, taking all of this information in. He stayed silent for a moment, trying to process it all. It sounded an awful lot like the curse Crowley has placed upon him, from the animal form, down to the light of day and night… 

And he had said… the book he had gotten it from that held all the answers on how to fix this mess was long gone, turned to ash. Something clicked in Aziraphale’s head, and he felt a wave of sickness wash over him at the realization of it all.

“You used the same curse on me… didn’t you?” He asked, eyes wide in horror, voice cracking.

Crowley sat up, leaning towards Aziraphale, looking rather panicked. “Aziraphale, it-it’s not that bad…!”

“You cursed me with the same magic, that you are afflicted with, even though you knew what would happen.” The blond accursed, before his expression hardened. The fear Aziraphale felt shifted to anger as he stepped back. “You can’t change me back.”

“Your highness, believe me, I’ve been lookin’ for a cure for years!” The snake pleaded. “I’ve been searching for so long, but do you have any idea how many different kinds of cures and curses there are!? You can never know what will happen for sure, and some of it can make it worse, but I promise-”

“No!” Aziraphale shouted, clenching his fists at his sides. “No, no more promises! You lied to me, you said you’d change me back when this was all over!”

“I meant what I said! I  _ will _ change you back!”

“When were you going to tell me you were cursed? From how dodgy you’ve been, it could have taken you years, if you ever deigned to tell me the truth! How long were you planning on keeping me trapped here with only my captor for company? I doubt you’d have ever told me the truth! How much of what you told me has been a lie? How can I ever trust you again?”

Crowley looked hurt, but he showed him an offended expression that a snake should not be able to make. “I’ve never lied to you! I’ve just… skimmed around details, but I’ve never truly lied! I said I was going to turn you back and I will!”

“I’m sure you’ve lied to me! You’re doing it now!” Aziraphale glowered down at him and Crowley pulled back.

“Fine! Okay, I’ve lied! I lied to save your sorry ass, to spare your feelings! I still don’t know who wants you dead, I have no bloody idea! I tried to look into it, but all I found out is that almost everyone in the kingdom is glad to be rid of you. Because you like sincerity so much, you want to know who else has been lying? Your so-called fiancé! Who didn’t care enough about you to send out guards farther than a mile around the castle! There is no one looking for you! You want me to stop lying, here ya go! Here’s the truth!”

As if he’d just realized what he had blurted out, Crowley snapped his mouth shut, his eyes wide in horror. He looked as if he hadn’t meant to say quite as much but couldn’t have stopped the words flowing out of his mouth, angry and cutting. It was clear that Crowley regretted telling the truth, but Aziraphale wasn’t seeing it, his mind still reeling with what had just been dropped onto him.

Aziraphale felt a lump in his throat. Gabriel wasn’t looking for him? No, no, he had to, they had a marriage agreement to fulfill, it was important to their people and their families! 

He turned away from Crowley as he felt a cold dread set in. “I want you to leave.” He said, voice calm compared to the internal storm he felt raging inside of him.

“Aziraphale…” He heard the snake start, his voice small, but Aziraphale was having none of that.

“Crowley. I want you to go home, I don’t want to talk to you right now. I don’t even want to look at you. Please leave me alone.”

With a small sigh, Crowley slipped from the rock, looking at him. Aziraphale made an effort to keep his face blank in an attempt to hide how affected and lonely he felt. He watched from the corner of his eye when Crowley took too long to leave. Then quickly looked away, as if he hadn’t been staring at the snake.

“Aziraphale, I’m sorry…” Crowley tried to say, but Aziraphale shook his head.

“Not now, please.” He said softly, just loud enough for Crowly to hear. Aziraphale did not miss the pained look that crossed Crowley’s face, as if he had taken a dagger and stabbed him in the heart.

The hurt expression turned bitter, yet the unexpected heartache remained.

“Fine. Fine, I’ll take my leave.” Crowley hissed out. “Mind how you go.”

Aziraphale heard the sound of scales gliding along the grass, the rustling of the bushes. He kept looking out at the lake until he could no longer hear Crowley then he rubbed at his eyes, cursing himself.

“Well, this is just tickety-boo, isn’t it?” He sniffed, looking at the moon’s reflection on the water. “I really can’t go home anymore, can I?”

The only answer he received was from his treacherous mind, telling him that no one was waiting for him there, anyway. That only made the ache he felt ten times worse.

Slowly, quietly, Aziraphale moved to sit on the rock, unable to really find anything else to do. His mind was too full of thoughts, his heart heavy with an ache he didn’t understand. He knew Crowley had kept things from him since the beginning, but it would probably have softened the blow if he had learned the truth from the start. Before he came to enjoy the other man’s company.

He had grown fond of Crowley, had considered him a friend, and had come to find himself excited to see him in the mornings. It had only been a few days, but Aziraphale had let Crowley into his heart, and now, finding out that Crowley couldn’t undo what he had done… it felt like a slap to the face.

As did the news of Gabriel not sending anyone to find him.

Was Crowley truthful about that? Or was it a lie designed to hurt him in the heat of the moment?

He rubbed his face, he was too tired and emotionally drained to deal with this, but he knew sleep would not come easy for him tonight. His friend, his only friend if he thought about it, had doomed him to a life as a swan.

How could Aziraphale go home like that? There was no way anyone would accept to be ruled by a man cursed as a swan by day, a man by night. What would his parents say?? 

And Gabriel, oh, he had only seen him a couple of times but he could already tell that this was clearly a situation the other prince wouldn’t dare have sully his reputation.

But there was a chance of being fixed, right? If Aziraphale could find a curse breaker or something of the sort. But Crowley had said there were so many, you’d have no idea what would work. Aziraphale had read enough books in his life to know that curses could be fixed through dozens upon dozens of different methods. 

He had no idea where to start, and he didn’t want to talk to Crowley about this. He was the one who got Aziraphale into this conundrum in the first place! But… Aziraphale felt he had no other choice, cut off from his ressources, he had no one else he could ask to break the spell except the only magic user he knew. And yet, Aziraphale wasn’t sure he could trust him anymore.

He groaned, running his hands down his face. “You’re a real idiot, Aziraphale.” He grumbled, he was still mad at Crowley for lying to him about being able to fix the curse like he promised, but it sounded like he had been honest about wanting to find a reverse to the spell’s effects.

After all, Crowley had been cursed for years thanks to his own clumsiness, and from what he had said, he hadn’t meant to transform Aziraphale. He must have thought that he had gathered enough experience in his craft to change things, to weaken and break the curse after all was said and done. But that didn’t seem to be the case

Who knows, maybe Crowley had tried fixing it when Aziraphale had still been unconscious from the sleep powder that day? That seemed a little far-fetched, but it was possible, wasn’t it? Perhaps he really thought that the spell he used wasn’t a curse after all and it wouldn’t be as hard to turn Aziraphale back??

Or maybe Aziraphale was just grasping at straws, trying to come up with excuses to remove the blame from Crowley.

Oh, but he wanted so badly to be angry with Crowley, and he could! He had the right to be furious about the lies, but even he couldn’t ignore how genuine Crowley had sounded when he said he would find a way to reverse the spell. Could he really have meant it? 

Despite his anger, the prince still needed Crowley to help change him back, even if he wasn’t in the mood to speak to that lying and slithering snake, they would have to talk about this.

Aziraphale’s head was pounding from the stress now, and he moved to lay himself down on the flat stone under him. “I’ll just talk to him tomorrow, if he bothers showing up again…” He mumbled, closing his eyes.

Despite his headache, and the uneasy twisting in his stomach, Aziraphale found himself sleeping through most of the night, until early morning. He woke up, still on the cold stone, noticing that the sun was just beginning to break the horizon. He sat up straight, staring at the sky, watching as the darkness started to fade, the stars vanishing one by one before his eyes. 

When the sun peeked over the horizon enough for him to see it, Aziraphale felt that warm feeling in his body, the glow of magic soon following. He found himself rising to his feet as the light engulfed him, his body shifting, getting smaller, changing into a form he really wished he wasn’t getting used to.

He felt his webbed feet gently touching the rock just as the light faded around him, his arms and hands gone, replaced by white wings. He looked at himself with a tired acceptance and moved to get into the water.

In his misery, he didn’t notice the shadow of a man lurking around the lake.

\--

Beelzebub was annoyed to have been disturbed from their sleep by the loud knocking at their door, but the look on Hastur’s face when they answered it had them more curious than anything else.

“What is it that brings you here so early, Hastur?” They asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Master, I have discovered the most… fascinatin’ thing that you must know about that prince Crowley ‘took care of’ for your customer.” Hastur said with a nasty, excited grin growing on his face.

Beelzebub gestured for him to come inside. “Please, do tell.”

\--

Did Aziraphale prefer red or white wines? He didn’t seem picky when they spoke about it yesterday.

Crowley clucked his tongue and decided to just buy a bottle of each, they’d be drunk without too much trouble anyway. He felt like his little shopping trip was both necessary and superfluous. He couldn’t really buy Aziraphale’s forgiveness for what happened, but some small gifts could probably help ease the tension between them.

He had already stopped by the bookshop, having picked up a couple novels from Mr. Anderson that he was sure the prince would enjoy. From what Aziraphale told him about his tastes, he loved both the classics and books about ancient history. Thankfully, Crowley had found a few of those at Mr. Anderson’s bookstore, who had assured him that Aziraphale didn’t already own the volumes.

“Looks like Prince Gabriel is going to make a speech about our prince’s disappearance soon.” Crowley overheard as he stepped back out into the streets. He turned, seeing two men talking to one another, and he couldn’t help but to listen in. What could Gabriel possibly say about Aziraphale?

“Think it’s good news?” The other man asked.

His friend just waved a hand, “I don’t think it will be the best news, but it will be something. Maybe they found the prince? Or it could be about a ransome, I mean, who would want to kidnap him without one?”

“He might be worth a pretty coin or two.”

Crowley frowned, this didn’t sound good. He knew Gabriel hadn’t really sent anyone out to find Aziraphale, Crowley would know if he had, he knew those woods like the back of his hand and in the few days since he had captured Aziraphale, Crowley had yet to see a single royal guard patrolling the paths in the forest. 

There was something very fishy in the air, and he knew Dagon wasn’t nearby.

The gossip about Prince Gabriel’s speech was spreading around the market and Crowley made his way towards the town square. The people gathered there were talking about what it could be all about, and Crowley hoped that this would be positive news for him to tell Aziraphale about later. He doubted it would be, but it didn’t hurt to have a little bit of hope.

The crowd didn’t have to wait long, as a man in clean, sharp pale gray and lilac clothes stepped upon a prepared platform. He was followed by his personal royal guards, all dressed in a similar shade of gray to his own, and another person who held a scabbard and sword at their side.

There was something... familiar about them, but the spellcaster couldn’t put his finger on it.

“Attention,” loudly said the man who had to be Prince Gabriel, in an attempt to quiet the crowd, “thank you. Now, I have received news this morning of my fiance, Prince Aziraphale, that his parents, your king and queen, have requested I tell you about.”

There was a quiet murmur from the audience before Gabriel held up a hand, silencing them once more. “My advisor, Michael, was informed that my men had found Prince Aziraphale early this morning, however…” He paused, his expression grim and Crowley felt a cold shiver running down his spine. No, no, he wasn’t going to say…

“The Prince was already dead. I am, of course, devastated as it seems that he was robbed and his body burnt, probably to cover up the crime. All they found that could identify my fiancé was this ring.”

Gabriel held up a small golden band, but Crowley already knew exactly what it was.

Aziraphale’s ring, the one he had personally given to Beelzebub to ‘prove’ he had completed his mission. How in the world did Gabriel get that? 

Would Beelzebub have given it to him? No, that wasn’t really their style, they tended to keep the proof as some sort of consolation prize, even if they hadn’t done the job themself. Had the client taken it? Left it at this supposed crime scene, or had they personally brought it to Gabriel? 

Crowley’s eyes drifted towards the other person, standing in Gabriel’s shadow. This had to be Michael, he realized as he recognized them. He had seen them several nights ago, when he was passing by his master’s home. They had been leaving, but Crowley hadn’t given them much thought, thinking they were just another customer for Beelzebub.

He had seen them again, two days later, just a glimpse, as they walked off into the woods with Gabriel before he had taken Aziraphale away.

Michael looked over the crowd, pausing on Crowley, as if they knew he was staring at them while Gabriel continued to speak. Crowley barely listened as he stared at the prince’s advisor, whose lips curled into a small, knowing smile. 

Just that look, that smug face, told Crowley that Michael knew that he had been the one who kidnapped Aziraphale.

This must mean that they knew he didn’t do what he was meant to do. A body had been found with the ring, but Crowley had never faked the murder, he had just said he had done something, so they must have some idea of what was really going on.

Reality struck Crowley like a brick and he knew he had to get to Aziraphale, he had to find him, before it was too late. Shoving his way through the crowd around the stage, he made his way towards the entrance of the town, only for someone to grab onto the back of his coat, pulling him back with a hard yank.

“Let me go, you-! Hastur!?” Crowley gasped, shoving himself away from the unsettling man. “What the hell are you doin’ here?” 

It was unusual for Hastur to venture into town, this didn't help the growing dread Crowley felt.

“Lookin’ for you, Crowley.” Hastur replied, holding up a folded piece of paper. “Got a message from Master Beelzebub for ya. Says they want you to come to their place, to… congratulate you for an important job well done, aren’t you a lucky bastard?”

Carefully, Crowley took the paper, scanning over it quickly. It  _ was _ an invitation, simple and snippy. Just as Hastur said, Beelzebub was inviting Crowley for a meal and a conversation, which made Crowley feel even more sick with unease. “Right, okay, I’ll be there, but I really need to get going…” He tried to step past Hastur, but the taller man stepped in front of him.

“What’s the rush?” He asked, his dark, nearly black eyes focused completely on Crowely’s face, probably enjoying how uncomfortable he looked at the moment. “Got somewhere to be that’s more important than a meal with the boss? Dont’cha wanna hear what that Gabriel guy has to say about all your  _ hard work _ ? Takin’ out a prince, you’ve outdone yourself.”

Crowley had to keep a level head, Hastur’s words had his heart thumping way too hard in his chest. Did Hastur know? How could he have found out? Crowley tried to ignore the knot in his stomach as he cleared his throat.

“Nah, uh not really my scene! Don’t like to bathe in the glory of my wiles! Gotta go, y-yeah, errand, gotta run it real quick, don’t want it… delayin’ me further. I’ll be there at Master Beelzebub’s, just let ‘em know, just gotta… unfinished business, things like that.” So much for being level headed. Crowley stepped quickly, slipping past Hastur and ignoring the smile on the other’s face, it made Crowley feel like he was covered in slime just thinking about it.

As quickly as he could, the magician ran down the path through the forest, looking for the right turn to get to the lake. He made sure neither Hastur nor anyone else were following, he had to be careful that Aziraphale wouldn't be spotted, he had to make sure he was okay.

He may have caused all this trouble for the prince, but Crowley swore on his very soul that he would do everything in his power to protect Aziraphale, he would bring him back to his home, even if it killed him to do so!

It was the least he could do after everything he had done, Aziraphale deserved his curse to be broken more than Crowley, he was innocent in all of this. He didn’t deserve to be cursed, nor did he deserve to be killed, neither as a farce to the public nor in reality... 

“Aziraphale!” He shouted, rushing into the clearing, finding the swan adrift on the lake.

Aziraphale jumped at the shout, turning around to look over at him, clearly confused. “Crowley?” He asked. “What the hell are you doing here?”

Crowley reached the shore, panting, and feeling relieved as he looked at the prince. He was perfectly safe, not a single scratch on him, he was alive, and that was all that mattered. “Aziraphale, you have to listen to me, we have to get you out of here!”

“Get me out of- Crowley, I can’t just leave. I need the lake.”

“Only at night to change into a human! Listen, right now you are in serious danger!”

Aziraphale drifted towards him, looking unamused. “And what, pray tell, do you mean by that? Why do you keep lying to me?”

“Guh! No!” Crowley looked around quickly, on high alert, before his attention returned to his friend. “Look, I was at the market this morning! I went to buy you gifts to apologize for being the biggest idiot in the universe, okay?!”

“You… were buying me gifts?” Aziraphale blinked, then jumped a bit when Crowley let out a growl and pulled at his own hair in frustration. 

“Yes! I felt like shit about what happened yesterday, thought it would be a nice gesture, or at least a good enough one to make you agree to talk to me again, but that’s besides the point! Your fiancé spoke to the townspeople about you! He told everyone you were killed, body burned, probably to make sure no one could identify you!”

Aziraphale looked sick at the news, shaking his head. “Impossible, how could they even know it was me?”

“Your ring!”

“My ring?”

“I… I took it, I had to show my boss that I completed the job, pretend that I had killed you so they would believe that the job was done and no one would bother looking for you until I could change you back! I had to show proof of what I did so I gave it to them! It wasn’t a smart plan, now that I think about it, ‘cause you returning would be talked about and Beelzebub would hear about it, but I think you know me enough by now to know plans aren’t really my forte!”

The bird looked more confused and disturbed the longer he listened. “Crowley, you’re not making any sense, why would Gabriel have the ring if you gave it to your boss?”

“Because my boss gave it to your fiancé’s advisor!”

“Michael?” Aziraphale let out a nervous laugh. “Crowley, that is pure nonsense-”

Crowley looked down at him, removing his glasses, hoping his bare eyes and the expression on his face could convey how serious he was about this. “Aziraphale, I saw them the night before I was given my assignment to kill you. I think they are the one who hired me to do so. I don’t know the reasons, but it’s pretty damn clear that they wanted you dead.”

The revelation made Aziraphale look as if a bucket of ice water had suddenly been dumped onto him. He was stunned to silence, eyes wide as he tried to absorb what had just been said.

“Now, come on, let’s get the stuff I’ve left off for you.” Crowley said, making Aziraphale look back at him. “We can… we can go off together!”

“Go off together?” Aziraphale repeated, his voice small. “But… but where would we go..?”

“I dunno, we could go to another kingdom, or to another country! We could fly off into the stars for all I care, as long as you’re safe! I don’t want anyone to come looking for you, just in case they find out that you’re still alive because I have a feeling my boss knows and will send someone to try and finish the job!”

He held out his hands, offering to help Aziraphale out of the water, but the swan didn’t move. “I… I’m sorry, Crowley. But I can’t go with you.”

Crowley’s expression dropped and he pulled back his hands. “Why? Why won’t you come? Is it because of what happened yesterday? It is because of that stupid spell?” He stood up straight, breathing in deeply through his nose. “Are you ever going to forgive me? I swear, I’m trying to help you out.”

“Really, dear, please don’t-”

“Alright.” Crowley nodded, moving to put his glasses back on, his jaw tight as he spoke. “Let me guess, I’m unforgivable, yeah? Seems fitting, ‘s what I am, just a terrible kidnapper, a thief and a criminal, getting the prince into more trouble than he ever expected and all my false claims about what I did to you just made things worse.”

Aziraphale shifted, moving a bit closer to the shore. He looked up at him, and spoke carefully. “Crowley, I can’t-”

Crowley dropped the basket he had been carrying with him, he wouldn’t need it anymore. The sound of it dropping onto the grass could be heard in the stillness of the air, too loud in Crowley’s ears, everything felt like it was closing in around him. 

“I have to go meet with my boss.” He finally said, voice tight as he flexed his fingers, trying to control their panicked twitching. “You should get out of here while you still have the chance. I’ll see what I can do to help you, even if you don’t believe a word of it.”

“Crowley, please, I just… it sounds so impossible.” Aziraphale tried to move closer to the magician, who stepped away. 

Crowley didn’t reply as he walked off, ignoring Aziraphale’s pleas for him to return to the lake. He couldn’t keep pleading, he had to go. Even if Aziraphale wasn’t going to believe him about Michael, the least he could do was to prevent Beelzebub from knowing the truth, or worse, act. He was going to protect the prince no matter the cost, he owed him that at the very least..

He just hoped he was making the right choice by leaving him behind.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter warning: attempted murder, death threats, injury, blood mentioned

“-and just when I was beginning to forgive him!” Aziraphale stomped his feet as he moved about his little area of the lake. “He just runs off like that! If he could have just stopped and spoken to me like a normal person, instead of spouting all that as if I would trust any of it from the get-go!”

The duck sitting nearby just watched quietly, before turning her head to nip at her backside.

Aziraphale sighed loudly before sitting down. He was getting so worked up over this, it was exhausting. “I don’t know if I should trust his words on this. I mean, Micheal hired someone to kill me? It seems so… preposterous! This sort of thing only happens in stories, it’s not real! It raises so many questions, why would they want me dead? Did they not find me a good enough choice for their prince?”

He wiggled uncomfortably. “Do you… do you think Gabriel knows of this? That he was the one who wanted me gone? I understand I’m not as good as he would have liked, and he’s not really my first choice for a spouse, but I would have done my best to make him happy.”

He didn’t really have much of a choice in husbands to begin with, being a prince, he was always expected to marry another prince and he’s been stuck with Gabriel since he was a child. “I don’t even know who I would want for myself, if I was given a choice.”

Oh, Aziraphale had given it some thought over the years, but a partner that he could pick for himself? To court and romance? Just a silly fantasy, stirred up after reading a good romance novel, he shouldn’t have been thinking such things when he was to be wed to Gabriel. 

The duck let out a few quacks and warbles from her spot and Aziraphale forced a laugh that sounded too loud and fake in his ears. “C-Crowley!? Oh please, dear, you shouldn’t make such jokes! I mean, he is rather fetching, if not a bit improper, but I doubt he would be interested, let alone want to be my friend seeing how our last conversation ended.”

She quacked again and Aziraphale gave a sad shake of his head. “I don’t think he wants to talk to me right now. Maybe I should take his advice though, make an escape, even though I’ll have to return. I fear that I wouldn’t get too far like this, especially if I wish to be human tonight.”

“Oh, there’s no need to worry about that, your highness.”

The duck let out a sharp sound before making her escape, but Aziraphale was frozen in place from the rising fear he felt at the unknown voice. He had been found, and, from the tone of voice, it wasn’t a royal guard.

When he found the strength to move, Aziraphale carefully turned his head, looking at a grubby man, with a shock of messy hair upon his head, and the darkest eyes Aziraphale had ever seen. “O-oh, hello, can I… help you?” He tried to be polite, to get to his feet. Maybe he could get out of this alive if he could just get back in the water…

“Yes,” The man spoke, his hands were behind his back as he stepped forward, “I was wonderin’ if you could just stay still, it’ll make all of this go a lot faster for the both of us.”

From behind his back, he produced a knife, and Aziraphale’s heart jumped into his throat. “Please, leave me be..!” He cried out, was this what Crowley had warned him about? Oh dear, he had been right the whole time, and Aziraphale had turned him away! 

“Now, we can’t have that, prince.” The man let out a sigh, clearly not in the mood for this. “If that idiot Crowley had just done what he was supposed to, I wouldn’t have to be cleanin’ up his damn mess for him. Don’t know why he spared ya, should have been an easy job, just kill and ditch, then everyone could go on with their lives. Well, ‘cept you, of course.”

Aziraphale swallowed, backing up a few more steps as the stranger approached him. “B-before you kill me, can you answer one question?”

The man stopped, giving this a moment’s thought. “I guess last wishes are in order, ask away.”

“Who hired Crowley to kill me?”

This brought a cruel, slimy smile to the stranger’s face. “I thought you knew the answer already, I’ve been told you’re a clever bugger, but if ya need a clue, they work for your fiancé.”

Dread settled in Aziraphale’s guts. Crowley had been right all along, he had tried to warn him that Michael had caused this. And Aziraphale had refused to believe him. How could he have been so foolish?

His thoughts were cut off abruptly when the stranger suddenly appeared in front of him, and Aziraphale felt the knife plunged into his body. He didn’t scream, barely letting out a gasp. He felt time slowing down as he watched the blade being slowly removed from his body.

Then time returned to normal, and with it came more waves of pain, making Aziraphale realize that he had to get out of here, as soon as he possibly could! 

Just as the man moved to plunge the blade back in, Aziraphale hissed and bit down on his hand, causing the attacker to drop his weapon with a surprised shout. Aziraphale pulled back and honked, flapping his wings as he attempted to flee. Flying hurt like hell, perpetually pulling and pushing on the wound in his side, but he tried his best to ignore the pain. He  _ had _ to escape! 

He had to fly as far away from this man as possible and get somewhere safe. But most of all, Aziraphale had to find Crowley.

\--

The door to Beelzebub’s home opening on its own did nothing to dampen Crowley’s fears as he stepped inside.

He wanted nothing more than to turn right around and return to the lake, to Aziraphale, to just grab him and run off together. Maybe he could fill a vessel with water from the lake, take that with them, and let Aziraphale stand in a tub of it under the moonlight to become human! That could work, right?

Maybe not, but it couldn’t hurt to try! Even without the lake, even if Aziraphale wouldn’t be able to turn human at night, he knew that he had to keep Aziraphale safe!

“You… wanted to see me, master?” Crowley asked, looking around, unable to spot the sorcerer.

“Of course.” It took every bit of willpower not to scream when he felt a hand touch his back. Crowley glanced over his shoulder, seeing Beelzebub standing behind him. They looked as bored as ever, yet the slightest hint of cruel enjoyment was present in their pale eyes. They loved putting him on edge. “Come, let’s have a meal together.”

“I… thank you, but I really should-”

“Sit.” Came the cold command and Crowley knew better than to go against it.

Taking a seat, Crowley discretely patted at his side where he kept a small pouch. He didn’t know if he would be using it today, but he was glad to always be carrying it. In his line of work, you could never be too careful.

“I wanted to talk with you today, Crowley.” Beelzebub spoke as they sat down across from him,in front of the fireplace. Crowley felt like the fires behind them were the fires of Hell, and he was on trial with its judge.

“About what…?” He asked, reaching for the glass of wine that had been sitting in front of him. He didn’t know if it had been tampered with, but he had to keep the illusion that he wasn’t suspicious or on edge.

“It’s about your latest job, the assassination one.”

Uh oh. This was not going to end well. “What about it? I did the job, just as you asked.” He replied as casually as he could, even relaxing in his seat to give the illusion that he wasn’t ready to jump up and run away at the first chance he got, as he kept looking for every single escape he could make.

Beelzebub folded their hands on the table, their face emotionless, Crowley hated it when he couldn’t get a read on them, it gave them the upperhand. “I understand that there were a few…  _ issues _ to deal with, though I have also heard word from one of my cohorts that Prince Gabriel had officially announced the death of the Prince. Apparently, his body was found.”

“Yes, I heard the announcement in town.” Crowley kept his voice even, his grip on the wine glass tightened. “Such a shame that they only found the ashes.”

“Didn’t think you had it in you to burn the evidence.” A twitch from their lip told Crowley they found this amusing, and he felt sick to his stomach in return. “Best idea you could come up with?”

“Yeeeaaaahhh… a bit of oil and fire magic, does wonders when gettin’ rid of evidence.” Crowley mumbled, swirling the wine in his glass. With a flick of his tongue, he could taste it in the air, a slight smell of almond, indicating the drink had been poisoned. So, Beelzebub did know. Crowley had to play his cards right, he had to know why Aziraphale was going to be killed and preferably walk out of this alive.

“And why fire? Why would you want that?” His boss asked. “Wouldn’t you want them to find the body and be able to identify it? Know for sure that the prince was gone for good?”

“Didn’t wanna bother burying him. Besides, it, uh, made it seem like it was a kidnappin’ gone wrong. Took his clothes and valuable stuff, worked amazingly, they figured out it was him from the ring, apparently.” Crowley set down the wine glass. “But How  _ did _ they get the ring? I gave it to you.”

“Gave it to the customer.” Beelzebub stated, as if this was the most obvious fact. “Had to prove that the job was done.”

Crowley narrowed his eyes. “If you don’t mind me asking, who was it exactly who hired us to take out Prince Aziraphale?”

Beelzebub looked up at him, Crowley swore the flames behind them grew threateningly. “Why do you want to know?”

“Curiosity.”

“If you must know, it was Prince Gabriel’s advisor, not that it should matter to you.” Beelzebub answered and Crowley hissed slowly. “Don’t act like you didn’t know, and don’t lie to me, Crowley. You didn’t kill the prince at all.”

“What makes you think I didn’t? I gave you the ring, I made it look like a robbery, I disposed of the body.” He lied, crossing his arms. “They found his body, the whole kingdom will know by nightfall.”

“They found nothing, I told Michael to spread the news that a corpse was found. Crowley, you were supposed to kill him.”

Crowley felt anger burning in him now. “Why did they want him dead, he hasn’t done anything to warrant an assassination!”

“Because he was nothing more than a nuisance. Prince Gabriel decided their marriage wasn’t worth the benefits for his kingdom, so why bother going through with it?” Beelzebub scoffed. “Why do you care about that? You never asked for a reason to do your job before...”

Beelzebub stood up from their seat, slowly moving closer to Crowley, like a lion ready to pounce. “You decided to let him live, it seems. Don’t tell me lies, Crowley, Hastur saw him, at the lake. He said you had cursed him. Now I wonder, why would you do that? Hm? Did you need a friend that badly? How unlike you to fraternize with higher society.”

“Fraternize?” Crowley hissed sharply. “I let him live because I felt he didn’t deserve to die! My instructions said to ‘deal with him’ while the other two were gone, so technically, I still did my job. It’s none of your business whether or not he’s cursed, he’s out of the picture, as the client requested!”

“You knew what I meant by that, Crowley. You had one job, and you failed it, spectacularly. And to think you actually thought you could get off scot-free with this change of plans, trying to get away with telling me half-truths and whole lies. When Hastur returns from completing  _ your _ job, I’ll have to give him a very special mission, involving what to do with a failure like you-” 

Crowley’s hand grabbed the pouch at his hip, suddenly throwing a thick, shining powder into Beelzebub’s face. They shouted in alarm before they collapsed to the floor, unconscious.

Crowley stumbled out of his master’s house, his heart beating hard in his chest from the rush of adrenaline. Hastur  _ saw _ , and Hastur wasn’t soft like Crowley was, when he wanted you dead, he made sure you would stay so. Crowley had to get back to Aziraphale, before the worst could happen.

\--

Running as fast as he could, Crowley found himself arriving at the lake in record time. He didn’t see the swan anywhere, but he was determined to find him. “Aziraphale!” He screamed, his voice echoing around the lake.

“Aziraphale, where are you!?” He rushed along the shoreline, shouting the prince’s name.

“For someone’s sake, please! Show yourself!” He panted hard, eyes searching for any glimpse of white. He tasted the air, nearly biting his tongue when he smelled copper. There, a few meters ahead, he could see something reflecting in the sunlight. 

He approached with caution, finding a knife in the grass. The blade was covered in blood and a few feathers laid around it. White, tainted with red.

“No… no, no…” He whispered frantically, reaching down to grab at the blade. It was Hastur’s, he recognized it, but there was no sign of the man… Nor of Aziraphale, was he too late? 

He should have stayed, he should have risked dealing with Hastur before confronting Beelezebub, he shouldn’t have abandoned Aziraphale like that…

There was a small, sharp pain in his leg, and Crowley looked down, seeing a duck pecking at his trousers. “What?” He asked, really not in the mood to deal with his perpetual bad luck. He yelped when she bit him again. “Hey, what the hell, duck!? Can’t you see I’m having a moment here, my friend is most likely dead!”

The duck ignored his outburst, turning her head, to the right. Crowley frowned, tilting his head a little, looking as she picked up a feather, using it to point in the direction she had been looking to. Was she trying to tell him something?

“Did… Aziraphale escape?” He asked her, he had no idea if she understood him, but it didn’t hurt to ask. She quacked in response before waddling back into the water.

Crowley looked at the dagger in his hand, the blood wasn’t completely dry, meaning that the attack had been recent.

There was a chance that Aziraphale had escaped, though he clearly had been wounded. Crowley decided to hold unto hope, rather than assume the worst. He had to trust that Aziraphale had flown away and taken his advice to hide seriously.

With the blade in his hand, Crowley ran once more.

\--

If there was one thing Crowley was thankful for about that messed up transformation spell, it was his tongue. He didn’t have any features when he was human that were snake-like, apart from it and his eyes. It was the only reason he could follow the scent trail left by Aziraphale’s blood, like a dog. The further he followed along the scent trail, the stronger it got. He didn’t like that, but it was the only way he could find him.

“Aziraphale!” Crowley called out, slowing down to catch his breath. He glanced around, trying to spot any more feathers. He had found a few along the way, indicating that the swan had flown through the trees. He was so glad that yesterday’s flying lessons helped, Crowley didn’t want to think of what could have happened if they hadn’t tried again.

He heard a weak call of his name somewhere just ahead, and Crowley perked up.

“Aziraphale, is that you?” He started to move once more, following the sound. The taste of blood was stronger now, much more than before, and Crowley picked up the pace.

There, in an old chalk quarry, he found Aziraphale. Crowley felt a relieved smile come to him, but it quickly faded when he saw all the blood, staining the white feathers a deep red.

Jumping into the quarry, Crowley quickly approached. “Aziraphale…” He didn’t know what to say, he was relieved that Aziraphale was still alive, but the wound looked deep and the bleeding wasn’t slowing down. Crowley mentally cursed, he’d make Hastur pay later.

Aziraphale inhaled with some difficulty, turning his head to look at Crowley, he looked happy and relieved to see him, at least. “Oh, Crowley… you found me.”

“Yeah, I did. Gosh, are you okay? How much pain are you in? Here, let me fix this up.” Crowley rambled as he patted himself down, trying to see if he had something he could use to clean up the wound. He found a clean handkerchief and used that, not liking the speed with which it became red. The prince let out a small hiss of pain as Crowley applied pressure. 

“I’m not doing so well, dear boy, it seems I got into a bit of trouble, heh.”

“I can see that. What happened?” Crowley asked before tearing a bit of his shirt off, to tie the handkerchief in a feeble attempt to stop the bleeding. It’s times like this he wished he knew healing magic! 

“A stranger with dark eyes found me, said he was going to do your job for you.” Aziraphale replied, laying his head back down on the ground, grunting when Crowley tightened the makeshift bandage. “I… I am guessing he works with you?”

“Yeah, Hastur, and I ain’t workin’ with him again. Or my master, for that matter.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to get you in trouble…”

“Aziraphale,” Crowley looked at him, swallowing the lump in his throat, he didn’t like how hard it seemed for Aziraphale to breathe, “listen, I don’t care. I don’t give a single fuck about my job right now, you didn’t do anything to get me in trouble, I took the risk of facing their wrath just by letting you live.”

Aziraphale lifted his head and slowly blinked at him. “Why did you decide to keep me alive, if it was that much trouble for you?”

“Because you didn’t deserve to die.” Crowley replied. “Aziraphale, the moment I saw you, I knew that you were a good person. Spending those last few days getting to know you only amplified that feeling. You deserve a long life, with lots of books and wine and food, you don’t deserve to die because someone doesn’t like you.”

“Gabriel went to a lot of trouble to get rid of me and our marriage...” The swan’s eyes looked wet with tears, Crowley had no idea that swans could cry like this.

“He doesn’t deserve you.” Crowley replied carefully. “Don’t shed a tear for him, he doesn’t care about anyone or anything that isn’t himself. The world revolves around him in his mind, and from what you’ve told me, he didn’t even bother to get to know you before he tried to get you killed. Like it would be too much work, he just didn’t want to bother knowing someone who’s different. You’re ten times better than he is. A hundred times, better! Hell, he just straight up told everyone you were dead without even looking sad, he’s garbage!”

Aziraphale let out a hollow chuckle. “You’re a bit rude to a man you barely know, but that’s sweet of you to say, I think. And _ you _ bothered to get to know me, that was nice, you didn’t have to do that, no one expected you to, no etiquette obligated you.”

Crowley reached out and wiped a tear, he’d apologize for the blood smear later. “Aziraphale, I need you to listen to me, please, this is important.”

Aziraphale rested his head against the palm of Crowley’s hand, keeping eye contact, waiting for the other man to speak. Crowley licked his dry lips, before gently speaking, stroking a few feathers with the pad of his thumb. 

“I swear to do everything in my power to keep you safe, Aziraphale. I’m gonna make sure you get out of this alive, and return you to your family, just like I promised. Even if I have to steal spellbooks, even if I have to fight Gabriel and Michael, or my boss and Hastur to do so. I promise you, I’ll protect you. I vow to keep you safe and sound for as long as I still breathe, I swear it.”

Aziraphale looked at him, his expression soft as he nuzzled at the hand holding his face. “Thank you, thank you, Crowley. I know you’ll keep me safe... I trust you.” He said, his voice clear of doubt. 

Aziraphale closed his eyes for a moment, before blinking, looking confused. He looked down at his chest, a bit alarmed.

“But, the sun…” He whispered, looking up at the sky just as Crowley noticed something in the air. He knew what this was, he had felt the magic of a transformation often enough. 

Crowley stumbled back, scrambling to his feet as Aziraphale rose before him. Leaves, instead of water, rising with him, circling around the prince as the light of the magic engulfed him. Throwing up a hand, Crowley shielded his sensitive eyes from the light, much brighter than the moonlight’s magic from the lake.

When it started to dim, he looked towards Aziraphale in awe, seeing him slowly begin to descend to the ground, human once more, with a beautiful aura around him.

Crowley was stunned silent as he watched Aziraphale’s feet touch the ground, only to have to quickly catch the man as he tumbled forward. 

“Aziraphale, are you okay?” He asked, looking at the man in his arms.

Slowly, pale eyes opened, staring up at him, before a small smile came to Aziraphale’s lips. “Hello, dear.”

A small, surprised laugh came out of Crowley. “Hello yourself, prince. You’re… you’re human.”

Aziraphale reached up, gently touching his cheek before looking at his hand in awe. “It seems that you won’t be needing to steal a spellbook after all, Crowley, not that I would have allowed you to do such a thing in the first place.”

Crowley smirked a bit. “Remember when I said you were enough of a bastard to be worth knowing? I take it back, you’re enough of a bastard to be worth  _ liking _ .”

This earned him a small chuckle as Aziraphale tried to stand up on his own, a little unsteady from the unexpected transformation. He patted his side, where he had been previously stabbed. His hands came away free of blood.

“I’m healed…” He stared in surprise at his hand, there was no indication of an injury, his clothes were immaculate as if it had never happened.

“I guess the magic repaired the damage done to your swan form.” Crowley commented, looking him over. “Well, I’m not gonna look a gift horse in the mouth, and neither should you. You’re human again!”

“But how? What did you do to change me back?”

Crowley looked stumped, what  _ had _ he done to cause this? He hadn’t tried any spells, he didn’t think he could unconsciously do this. But words have power, everyone who dabbled in magic knew that so that left... 

“The vow.” Crowley breathed, looking at Aziraphale as a grin formed on his lips. “I gave you an everlasting vow!”

“Excuse me?” Aziraphale blinked, appearing utterly confused at the excitement on Crowley’s face. “What vow?”

“Yes! Oh, Aziraphale, I vowed to you that I’d protect you, keep you safe, I meant every single word of it! Words are a powerful, strange form of magic! I’ve read about it, that vows, powerful declarations, words spoken with feelings, they can have magic in them. Like a curse, yeah? You just say words with enough emotions put in, and boom! Someone’s cursed! But if you vow, or bless someone, it’s like... like an opposite curse!”

It seemed that the pieces from Crowley’s rambling were slowly connecting for Aziraphale when he perked up. “Are you saying that your vow to protect me all your life was so truthful and heartfelt that it broke the spell?”

“Exactly!”

“It sounds like something from a fairy tale, if you ask me.” Aziraphale smiled, clearly amused.

“Ah, true, but there’s always a kernel of truth to a tale!” Crowley grinned before he took a more serious expression. “Aziraphale, now that you’re human once more, we need to get you home.”

The smile on Aziraphale’s face slipped. “But… they think I’m dead.”

“Yes… and it’s possible that Hastur might have warned Michael if he doesn’t think you’re dead from the wound he inflicted you. And my boss, oh, they’re probably awake now. Knocked ‘em out with my magic powder, they’re gonna be furious with me…” Crowley mumbled to himself, trying to think up a plan. “We still have another option.”

“Crowley,” the prince wringed his hands together, “we can’t just run away.”

“Not with that attitude.” Crowley huffed, before his shoulders sagged. “No, you’re right, that’s the easy way out. I think we’re gonna have to deal with them, we need the kingdom to know you’re still alive and that Gabriel lied to them.”

“If we need to return to the castle, we better be quick. The sun will set in a few hours, and you’ll become a snake.”

Crowley shook his head. “Don’t worry about it, if they have to deal with a not so dead prince and a talking snake, then that’s just how it will have to be. Besides, it might be more fun that way.”

This didn’t seem to ease Aziraphale’s dread, so Crowley gently took his face in his hands, making him look at him. “Aziraphale, I will make sure you get the justice you deserve for what happened. I will keep you safe, I promised you this.”

“I… I know. I just don’t want anything bad to happen.”

“I doubt anything worse could happen to you after two attempted murders in a week.”

“I meant for you.”

Oh, that caught Crowley off-guard. He coughed, clearing his throat as he felt himself blush. “I’ll be fine, don’t worry. I haven’t lived this long as a criminal without a few tricks up my sleeves, literally and metaphorically.”

“Well then, let me introduce you to my parents and my betrothed, dear.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Were you expecting a kiss? ;)
> 
> (Just a heads up, chapter seven will take a few days to come out, still writing and editing it, but we'll have it up as soon as possible!)


	7. Chapter 7

There was a hush throughout the town as Aziraphale walked through the streets, head held high with a confidence he didn’t actually have. But Crowley was at his side, tall and fierce, ready to defend him at any moment.

However, Aziraphale was very aware that Crowley was just as tense and nervous as he was. He could see it in the tight grimace on the taller man’s face, but he didn’t address it. No, right now, they had to act like they had control over the situation. Hopefully they were pulling it off, they had to look casual, like this was perfectly normal for Aziraphale. 

But the townsfolk were not casual about it. They were watching in horror and shock as their supposedly-dead prince walked through town as if nothing had happened, clearly still alive. A few people called out, but Aziraphale ignored them, his mind focused on his goal of talking to his parents and confronting Gabriel.

“Are you alright?” Crowley whispered, keeping close to his left.

Aziraphale gave a stiff nod, but he was sure that Crowley knew better than to believe that. He was not alright, but he had to appear like he was. “We’re almost there, act normal, do not let your guard down. If the town is aware, it will only be a matter of time before Gabriel is told. Gossip travels fast in this city.”

“You sound like you know from experience.”

Aziraphale sighed, rolling his eyes. “Of course I do, don’t think I am not aware of what people say about me. I just choose to ignore it and not give them the satisfaction of my reaction.”

Crowley just smirked at this as they continued their trek towards Aziraphale’s home.

When they approached the entrance, the guards looked alarmed but Aziraphale remained calm, holding up a hand. “I know that this must be quite a fright for you, but I am Prince Aziraphale, I request an audience with my parents, please allow me in with my companion.”

“Hey.” Crowley greeted, giving a small salute.

The two guards looked unsure, but they opened the gate, as requested. When they were allowed inside the castle’s grounds, Crowley chuckled, leaning close to the prince. “You have a pretty steady voice when you give orders. But you looked like you wanted to pass out.”

“Oh, don’t start, Crowley.” Aziraphale grimaced. “I’m beyond nervous, but I do know how to lead. Come, the guards should have passed on word to the messenger, my parents will know I’m here.”

He felt a gentle, yet firm, squeeze on his shoulder and Aziraphale looked up to see a calm smile on Crowley’s face. “You’ll do fine, they’ll believe what happened, I doubt that they will think you lied.”

“I hope you’re right…”

\--

The inside of Aziraphale’s home was grand and beautiful, Crowley was a bit in awe as he followed alongside the prince towards the throne room. They stopped before heavy, wooden doors and the guards on either side looked confused and a bit alarmed, just as the others at the gates had been.

Aziraphale paid them no mind as he opened the doors, stepping into the room. There, in the back, upon gilded chairs, sat the king and the queen of the small kingdom. Crowley felt the urge to run and hide, he had never been around authority figures like them before, but he remained firmly planted at Aziraphale’s side, like he had promised.

The royals looked surprised to see their son, surely they had been informed of his arrival, but then again, there was a difference between knowing something and seeing the proof before you. “Aziraphale…” The queen started, “you’re truly alive?”

“The rumors of my death were greatly exaggerated, I assure you.” Aziraphale said with a gentle smile on his face as he approached, giving a bow. “Mother, Father, I am very much alive, and I have quite the story to tell you of what has happened over the past few days.”

Aziraphale began to explain his side of the story, telling them everything he knew. About the attack on the carriage, waking up at the lake, the spell placed upon him. While Aziraphale told them what happened, Crowley kept silent, his eyes on the floor as he listened. 

The urge to run amplified tenfold when Aziraphale explained that Crowley had been involved, but he stayed put, a steady presence to support Aziraphale. He had to admit, being near Aziraphale was keeping him calmer than he would have been in such a situation. 

The king nearly summoned the guards when Aziraphale told them what Crowley had done to kidnap him and Crowley had stepped behind him, squirming. Sensing the tension, Aziraphale quickly begged for his father to not harm Crowley. He then went into more detail, explaining how it had been a set-up to possibly stop the marriage from going through, how Crowley’s orders greatly implied that he was meant to kill Aziraphale but had refused to do so.

The prince then reconted the attack that happened earlier that day, how Crowley had been away dealing with his master when Aziraphale was stabbed, how he had found the swan and was able to accidentally break the curse.

When the story finished, there was a heavy beat of silence before the king finally spoke. “While I never believed the idea that my son would run away, this story you’ve told is… incongruous and rather hard to believe. It sounds like something from one of your fairy tale books, Aziraphale.”

“But it really happened!” Crowley said defensively with a frown. “I really turned him into a swan to save him.”

“My dear,” Aziraphale spoke, placing a hand on Crowley’s arm, “I never quite liked that pink vase, over there. Could you rid us of it, please?” 

Crowley glanced over to where Aziraphale was vaguely gesturing, seeing a horrendous pink vase sitting upon a pedestal near a wall. He raised a questioning eyebrow, but gave a shrug when Aziraphale nodded. “Gotcha, one vase removal, comin’ up.” He lazily tossed up his hand and the vase cracked with a snap of his fingers, before shattering into pieces in a small but sharp explosion. The three royals watched in shock as Crowley pretended to dust his hands. “See? Magic man, that’s what I am.”

Aziraphale huffed. “I thought you were going to make it disappear, not blow it up, you silly serpent.”

Crowley chuckled. “I told you, prince, I’m an all-powerful magician! Gotta make a show out of it!”

“You really didn’t have to do that.”

“Well, I did. So! What’s the plan now? What do we do about Prince Gabriel and Michael?”

A deep, thoughtful look crossed Aziraphale’s face. “It greatly depends on what we should do with the marriage arrangement, yes? I feel as though with a kidnapping and attempted murder plot, we are in our right to get it annuled.”

“I think,” Aziraphale’s mother said, “that we should speak with Prince Gabriel and his advisor, get their side of the story.”

Aziraphale bit his lip, tugging a bit at his jacket. “That would be best, yes. But I fear what will happen when we confront them.” He spoke softly. “Surely by now they are aware of my return, they could be planning an escape, or worse, a way to twist the details in their favor.”

Crowley clucked his tongue. “Look, you’re alive and everyone in this room already knows the truth. We’ll get them to confess. Talk to your parents, set up a plan to get Gabriel and Michael into a room where they won’t be able to escape.”

“I think the library is a good choice, I’d rather do this in the room I’m most comfortable in. How about you wait in there for me while I speak with my parents, I’m sure Gabriel and Michael are more worried about my arrival than yours so they won’t expect you there. And if they try anything, you can use your magic, yes?”

The magician nodded. “Sounds good, I’ll head over there, just make sure that those two will be there or else we’re gonna have to track ‘em down.”

Aziraphale gave a nod of his own before crossing his arms as he leaned forward to whisper. “Also, I thought you said you couldn’t snap your fingers all willy-nilly when performing magic?”

“That was in regards to the spell put on you, that was an incantation. What I just did was very basic magic, simple concentration and all that.” Another snap, the vase was fixed. He grinned, waving his hands a little, earning a hard eye roll that only served to make Crowley’s grin widen. “Right, best be off! Have fun talking to your folks!”

He spun on his heel, ignoring the nearly-dramatic sigh Aziraphale let out before he apologized to the king and queen on Crowley’s behalf. Crowley didn’t get very far on his way to the doors though, as he felt a familiar, unwanted, burning inside of his chest. He turned sharply, seeing through the throne room’s large windows that it was starting to get dark outside.

“Aziraphale, it’s dussssssk!” He cursed inwardly at the hiss in his words.

Aziraphale let out a small gasp. “Crowley, do you need anything? How can I help you?”

“N-no, it’s fine, I’m just… it’s close to what happened with you, just not as dramatic.” Crowley only had a few minutes before he would be changing into a snake. Unlike Aziraphale, Crowley’s curse wasn’t tied to a location, all he needed was the sun to set and he would be a snake.

However, that did not mean that it made things easier for him. Unlike Aziraphale, whose curse had been perfectly casted, Crowley had to suffer from a rather uncomfortable transformation due to his inexperienced casting in his youth.

“Just tell me how to get to the library, I’ll meet you there.” He said, gesturing to the doors. “Best I transform out of sight, you really don’t want to see that happen.”

Aziraphale nodded, telling him quickly how to get to the library. Crowley gave his thanks before hurrying towards his destination. 

Crowley barely had enough time to light up the library’s candles with a snap of his fingers before the sun vanished below the horizon and he dropped to his knees. He always hated this part, even after so many years, he would never truly get used to the painful transformation from man to snake.

He felt black and red scales breaking out his skin as magic sparked and danced across his body, it felt like when a limb went to sleep, all pins and needles across every inch of him. His hair vanished, his body fusing and morphing painfully, before he found himself resting on the floor as a large snake.

Crowley couldn’t help the sigh that escaped him, still cursed, how disappointing that his vow didn’t work both ways. At least Aziraphale was free, which was all that mattered. He had kept his promise to the prince, and he could keep living his cursed life if it meant Aziraphale was safe.

Sliding across the floor, Crowley moved to find a good hiding spot. All he needed to do now was wait for Aziraphale and his guests to arrive. 

\--

Aziraphale found himself outside of the library doors, feeling more on edge than he had in quite some time.

His parents and him had discussed the details of the plan and how they could set things in order to get rid of Gabriel. A servant had been sent to guide them and now Aziraphale was stuck waiting for them to arrive. He hoped they would arrive soon, he didn’t want to keep Crowley waiting. Glancing at the doors, he wondered if the other man was alright, he had to be a snake by now.

He nearly opened the door to check on Crowley when he heard quiet voices coming down the hall. Straightening up, Aziraphale watched as Gabriel and Michael turned the corner, speaking to one another until Gabriel looked in Aziraphale’s direction, stopping suddenly. He opened his mouth like a gasping fish before closing it, eyes wide.

Then he put on his forced smile, the one Aziraphale had seen him wear during their first meeting over tea what felt like a lifetime but was only days ago.

“Aziraphale!” Gabriel spoke with too much enthusiasm. Michael remained silent, their posture was stiff, their hand gripping at the handle of the sword at their side.

“Gabriel, Michael.” Aziraphale greeted them, his voice even. He needed to act like he was in full control, he couldn’t give them an opening to figure out what was about to happen. “I hope you are well.”

“Why yes.” Gabriel continued to smile as he approached. “It was such a shock to find out that you were alive! Look at you, not a scratch! What exactly happened?”

“Yes,” Michael spoke as they stepped up to the side of their prince, “do tell us how you’ve returned home after… the carriage accident.”

Aziraphale glanced at them both before putting on a smile. “Please join me in the library, we will be more comfortable to talk there.”

Stepping inside, Aziraphale found the candles lit, but no sign of Crowley. He made his way to his favorite seat, sitting down before gesturing to the plush chairs near his own. Gabriel sat down, and Michael stood close by, hand still resting on the handle. Aziraphale chose to ignore it as he sat back, resting his hands on his lap. “I suppose that we should discuss what occurred that day in the forest, yes?”

“Yes, we should.” Gabriel replied, flexing his fingers on the armrest of his seat.

“Well, I’d like to set the record straight,” Aziraphale sighed, “I was kidnapped.”

The other prince let out a loud gasp, he even brought up a hand to his mouth. Aziraphale resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Gabriel might be an excellent athlete and prince in his own right, but he was a dreadful actor. 

Aziraphale decided to ignore the reaction and continue. “When you two went off into the forest, I was knocked out in the carriage. When I awoke sometime later, I had found myself at a lake somewhere still within the kingdom.”

“A lake?” The tone of Gabriel’s voice indicated that this was news to him, apparently Michael didn’t fill him in on all the details. When Aziraphale glanced at them, Michael simply kept a neutral look to their face, they might already know about the lake, and possibly of his time as a swan, if Crowley’s master had told them what they knew. 

“Yes, I was kept there until today.”

“So, you were kept hidden away at a lake, why didn’t you try to return here?” Gabriel asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Because I was unable to. My kidnapper… performed a spell, preventing me from leaving the lake.” Aziraphale caught movement out of the corner of his eye on the second level balcony of the library. He saw something long and dark moving by the banister, but he didn’t comment. They didn’t need to know that Crowley was around.

Gabriel gave a slow nod, frowning. “And yet you’re here. I didn’t know you could perform magic as well, because aren’t those the ones who can stop spells?”

Aziraphale tilted his head, giving a little shrug of his shoulders. “I do believe that’s the usual assumption of spells, but sometimes you can find a loophole or two that allows non-magic users an escape.”

This didn’t seem to please either of the two across from Aziraphale. Gabriel drummed his fingers on the arm rests, his foot jerking up and down in the quiet room. “I see.” He finally replied. “You never can trust the accuracy of a spell, can you?”

“I suppose you cannot.” Aziraphale spoke softly. “Now, getting back to the subject at hand, I am rather curious of what you two were up to while I was in the forest.”

“What do you mean? We were looking for you, of course! Couldn’t have my fiance in danger!” The other prince grinned brightly. “I even sent out my personal guards along with yours to search for you! I guess they didn’t bother to go searching around any lakes in the area though.”

Aziraphale didn’t react to that, he just sighed. “Right. I suppose I should thank you for at least making an attempt to find me. However, I’m… rather curious about something, it's been on my mind for a while now. What exactly had you and Michael going off into the woods, leaving me behind and alone in the carriage, right where someone was able to grab me?”

Gabriel visibly flinched, ah, interesting. “W-well, you see, Aziraphale! There was, uh, we saw-”

“I saw strange tracks.” Michael interrupted. “I thought it could be from a large beast that would make for an excellent hunt for my prince.”

“Yes! That’s what it was!”

The younger prince tisked. “A large beast? Did you catch it?”

“Well, no, we lost track of it.” Gabriel waved a hand, dismissing this. “And when we couldn’t spot it, we returned to find you were missing, along with a horse!”

“Did you bother to try and find me after you realized that a horse and I were gone?”

“Oh, well, of course we did! And when we found no trace of you, we rushed right back to the kingdom to inform everyone that you had run away!”

“Or were kidnapped.” Michael tacked on, looking everywhere but at Aziraphale himself.

Aziraphale bought none of this, and he could see on their faces that they were figuring things out as they went. “What an interesting turn of events, don’t you think? That those tracks just happened to be spotted in the exact spot where my kidnapper was waiting, and that you two just happened to want to hunt down this so-called beast in order to leave me behind on my own.”

Gabriel frowned, looking suspicious. “Stranger things have happened, Aziraphale. You’re just being paranoid because of the traumatic events that happened to you. We really went after something, you just didn’t wish to join us. If you had, you would have been safe! Really, there’s no one to blame for what happened except yourself. You were a sitting duck!”

“It was simply a matter of circumstances. As the saying goes, ‘the wrong place at the wrong time’.” The advisor stated, as if this was the most obvious reason.

“Oh?” Aziraphale raised an eyebrow, glancing to his left before returning his attention to his guests. “I don’t think it really went that way, and you’ll find my friend agrees, don’t you dear?”

Gabriel let out a shout of alarm that caught both Michael and Aziraphale by surprise. Coming down the stairs was an enormous snake, and Michael stood in front of their prince, pulling their sword from its scabbard. Getting up, Aziraphale gently pushed the blade down. “No need for that, Michael.”

He ignored their confusion as he approached the snake, smiling as he knelt down, holding out his hands. “There you are, dear, I was wondering when you’d show yourself.”

“Y-you, uh, you have a snake?” Gabriel asked, watching as the creature slithered up around Aziraphale to rest upon his shoulders.

Aziraphale let out a little huff at the weight, but straightened himself up, then gently scratched under Crowley’s chin, earning him a flick of a tongue against his cheek. “Oh yes, I do believe introductions are in order! Crowley, this is Gabriel, my betrothed, and his advisor, Michael. Gabriel, Michael, I’d like you to meet Crowley, my kidnapper and the man who saved my life.”

Michael narrowed their eyes, lowering their sword as Crowley turned his head in their direction. “Hello, I’m the magic user you hired.” Crowley said and Gabriel gasped, mumbling a question of ‘that snake can talk?’ that was ignored by everyone in the room.

“Yes, I was… informed about you by your cohort.” Michael replied. “A snake? There are better ways to be intimidating, if that’s what you’re trying to do, thief.”

“I’m sure there are,” Crowley looked a bit amused as he wrapped more of himself around Aziraphale possessively, “but I am rather fond of my more  _ serpentine _ qualities. So, back on the topic at hand, would you like to explain why you hired me to kill Aziraphale?”

“Yes,” Aziraphale smiled as sweetly as honey covering poison, “I would love to know what this is all about.”

“W-what?” Gabriel chuckled, giving a halfhearted shrug. “Aziraphale, there’s no need to jump to such untrue conclusions like hired murder! Whatever gave you that ridiculous idea?”

Aziraphale’s smile tightened. “Gabriel, I’m not a fool. You showed my ring to my people to prove that I had died, yet Crowley had personally delivered that exact ring to his master. Now, why on earth would you have that unless you hired someone to kill me?” 

“Weeellll… not really  _ kill _ you, exactly.”

“Care to explain what you mean?”

“Death was an option.” Michael spoke up. “I hired Beelzebub the sorcerer to do something with you to keep you out of the picture long enough for the marriage to fall through so that Prince Gabriel would be free from your union.”

Crowley hissed in warning. “My instructions were to kill, I chose to kidnap, because unlike you, I try to know people before I decide to murder them.”

Michael did not appear the least bit bothered by Crowley’s threatening tone. “Beelzebub asked what to do with Prince Aziraphale. Take him out, or  _ take him out _ . I didn’t care, as long as he was done away with. Either way, they took the money and assured me that you wouldn’t be a problem anymore.” They tisked as they looked Aziraphale over. “Well, it would seem that they owe me money now.”

Aziraphale felt uneasy under Michael’s tone, they sounded like they weren’t worried about their admission, like his life didn’t matter to them at all. “But why try to have me killed? What would you get out of it aside from getting the marriage annulled? I hadn’t done anything to you or Gabriel! I know I’m not exactly your ideal for a husband, Gabriel, but was it really necessary to go that far? I’m sure we could have talked about this and come to an agreement of some sort!”

“I’m sure we could have, Aziraphale, but let’s be honest, I just didn’t want to marry someone like you, especially for what little I would have gotten out of it, it just all looked like a bad investment.” Gabriel shrugged and Crowley’s hold on Aziraphale tightened just a little bit.

Aziraphale already knew how little Gabriel thought of him or his Kingdom but it still felt like a slap to the face. It hurt, but he wasn’t going to let it get to him. “We could have dealt with this like adults. You didn’t have to try to have me murdered!”

“Technically, you were just meant to be kept away long enough until a certain time when the conditions of our arrangement would be null and void, then you could come back and I’d be away from here.”

“But murder worked just as well as a kidnapping.” Michael added. “As long as you were out of sight for a while. Clearly it didn’t work.”

“I don’t kill for nothing, simply because someone was unhappy with the idea that they were to be married.” Crowley spoke, narrowing his eyes. “That’s so pathetic, I might cry. Aziraphale’s lucky I was Beelzebub’s only available magic user at the moment, else you might have succeeded!”

“Crowley…” Aziraphale frowned, holding up a hand to gently silence his friend. “Don’t waste your anger on them, it’s pointless. Now, Michael, why are you telling me these things? You seem so confident that I won’t tell anyone.”

“Who will believe your ridiculous story of being trapped and cursed when no one in the kingdom seems to care about you?” Michael frowned, looking down their nose at him. “We’ve heard the people talking, no one in this kingdom is afraid to voice their opinions about the useless heir they have. And besides, all the evidence you have of your claims come from that thief, who would trust the words of a criminal?”

“You’d be surprised.” Crowley smiled and looked past Michael, eyes on the doors.

Michael turned sharply, looking at the library’s open doors where four figures stood in the doorway. Aziraphale’s parents were there with two of their personal guards, the king and queen looking rather displeased.

Gabriel turned in his seat, looking at their unexpected guests, before he turned back to Aziraphale, eyes wide. “How long-?”

“Shortly into the conversation.” Aziraphale smiled. “Prince Gabriel, I’m afraid I’m going to have to put our wedding on hold once more, indefinitely.”

The guards moved towards Gabriel and Michael, lifting the prince from his seat and putting his hands behind his back. Michael scowled, refusing to let the men roughhouse them, putting their own hands behind themself after discarding their sword, knowing it would do them no good to threaten anyone at this point.

“What happens now?” Gabriel asked as a guard bound his wrists with rope. “It’s clear the marriage contract is null and void now, but what will you do with us?”

“I feel like a punishment is in order.” Crowley said, a bit of malice in his voice.

Aziraphale frowned, shaking his head. “Dear boy, that won’t do at all!”

“Prince, they did try having you murdered to get out of the marriage, I think it’s only fair they be punished. I know you’re angry with them, it’s clear as day on your face!”

While it was true that Aziraphale was furious about all of this, how his life nearly ended over such a pointless reason, he didn’t want to deliver a punishment. “I don’t want to step anywhere as low as them.” He responded, to which Crowley nodded, seeming to understand.

“Then you should let them be dealt with by your parents.” Crowley spoke as he slipped off of Aziraphale, curling around his feet.

“That’s what we decided when we spoke before coming here.” Aziraphale nodded, looking over at Gabriel and Michael, both frowning at him.

“Aziraphale, can you answer one question?” Gabriel asked and Aziraphale nodded, letting him continue. “How did you break that spell that had you trapped? I know you’re not a magic user, and normal people can’t just break through magic using  _ loopholes _ , what did you do to break it?”

Aziraphale shook his head. “I didn’t break the spell, someone else did.” He looked down at Crowley before continuing, softly, “Someone who was looking out for me during my time at the lake, when I couldn’t do much for myself due to circumstances. A very kind soul who had no reason to do that.” Aziraphale smiled tenderly. “He kept me safe, even when an assassin tried to kill me. I owe him my life.”

At his words, Crowley rose up to gently nudge his head against Aziraphale’s palm. “In the end it was Crowley’s vow to keep me safe with his life that did it. Words have such powerful magic, you know?”

“Hmm…” Gabriel’s expression soured as he looked at Crowley and then Aziraphale. “Never can trust magic users. Alright, I guess an audience with your parents is in order. Though I suppose I do have something I need to return to you.”

Gabriel gestured to the pocket of his jacket and Aziraphale carefully slipped his hand in, removing his ring from within. He gave his thanks to Gabriel, who stayed silent, as Aziraphale placed the ring upon his pinky. He immediately felt relieved at the weight, everything was back in order for him.

“Well then, I believe we are through here.” Gabriel huffed.

Aziraphale smiled a little more as he watched his ex-fiance and his advisor being pulled away out the doors by the guards, followed by his parents. Once the doors closed behind them, Crowley slithered up around him once more, head resting on the prince’s shoulder. “Ssssooooo… that went well. I was expecting more of a fight.”

“I think you had them on edge, dear boy.” Aziraphale replied. “Still, I was a bit fearful for a moment there, Michael looked ready to finish the job themself!”

Crowley nodded before giving Aziraphale a small bump against his cheek. “I wouldn’t have allowed it. I would have thrown a book at them if they tried anything against you.”

“You wouldn’t dare! Not any of  _ my _ books, you wily serpent!”

“You’re in a library! Any book can be used as a weapon!” Crowley argued, but was clearly amused by riling up the prince. “Still, I promised to protect you, and I will continue to do so, if you let me.”

“What do you mean, Crowley?”

“Well… you’re back home, you’re no longer a swan, and those two are probably going to be sent back to France. I dunno if you really… need me around, you’re already safe here.”

“Crowley...”

“And I caused you enough trouble as it is! I should probably get out of your hair, besides, I gotta get outta here, I know that Beelzebub probably wants me dead, so I should get goin’ if I want to keep my head on my shoulders.”

“Crowley, dear.”

“If not Beelzebub, probably Hastur, he’s always looking for an excuse to try and kill me. Never liked me much, bet he’s waiting outside the village right now, ready to quite literally, stab me in the back-”

“Crowley!”

“Yesss?” Crowley turned his head sharply, looking at Aziraphale with wide eyes.

With a small laugh, Aziraphale moved to his chair, coxing Crowley to rest upon it. “Dear boy, I don’t think you need to worry about all of that.”

Crowley looked rather confused and Aziraphale continued. “I think… if it’s not too much trouble, maybe you could stay here, with me? You can protect me still, a-and you’d be safer here, where your master and Hastur wouldn’t be able to reach you! And, uh, well, I could find you a job! I’m sure there’s something a magician such as yourself could do for the kingdom!”

He wrung his hands, twisting his ring around his finger. “Maybe you could be my personal advisor, I’ve never had one before, and I’m sure I would do well to have someone like you by my side, helping me keep the kingdom in order once I take the throne.”

“You… want me to stay?” Crowley asked. “Even after everything? Even though I cursed and nearly got you killed?!”

“Crowley, I owe you so much for what you did, even if you did have a hand in a lot of what occurred, you still  _ cared _ . You could have killed me, just done your job like you were supposed to, but you didn’t. You let me live, you took care of me, kept me company, brought me books and wine, you even took the time to get to know me, which is more than anyone else has ever tried to do. I’ve come to consider you my friend and I would be honoured if you decided to stay by my side.” He knelt down in front of the snake, cupping his face. “I don’t care that you turned me into a swan, you kept your promise to change me back, and I hope you now will keep your promise to stand my side and protect me.”

Crowley stared at him with wide, golden eyes, smiling just a little under Aziraphale’s palms. “You’re gonna regret it, I’ve been told I’m a real pain in the ass.”

“Oh, I’m fully aware of that, Crowley.” Aziraphale smiled with a little playful wiggle of his head.

“Again, you are a bastard. Well, guess you’re stuck with me, a friend who is man by day, snake by night.” Crowley snickered, moving out of Aziraphale’s hold and slithering around on the floor. “You’re fine with that?”

“You put up with me being a swan by day, a prince by night, I think that’s fair. And besides, now we can focus on finding a way to break your curse! I’m sure we’ll figure it out.” Aziraphale smiled brightly. “All in due time though, for now… I could use a break, it’s been quite the stressful day!”

Crowley nodded as Aziraphale collapsed into his chair next to him. He moved closer, wrapping his body around the base of the chair. “An attempted murder, an escape, breaking a curse, explanations and politics.” Crowley said, the tip of his tail touching Aziraphale’s fingers as if counting on them. “I’m impressed you’re still up, all these emotions can wipe out a man, can’t it?”

“Oh, don’t forget we also had a fight today, you dreadful creature” Aziraphale rolled his eyes as Crowley laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be an epilogue, stay tuned!


	8. Chapter 8

“Aziraphale?” Crowley peered into the chambers of his prince, finding him at his desk, looking over documents and the like.

He should have expected to find Aziraphale there, the poor prince had been so busy since his father had decided it was time for him to take over the crown. Crowley thought the whole process required a simple ceremony or a blessing, but apparently it was a lot of paperwork, meetings and the like.

As Aziraphale’s personal advisor, Crowley was required to attend many of these meetings, but he personally found them boring and relied on Aziraphale's better judgement of such matters. After all, he had been training for this all his life whereas Crowley helped him regaining his people’s trust and favour. He had a few ideas on how to improve life for the poor and middle classes.

There was an exhausted sigh from Aziraphale as he leaned back in his chair, turning his head to look at Crowley. “Dear boy, would the kingdom fall to shambles if I was to take a break?”

“Well, my prince, I’m afraid that the castle would burn if you were to rest for more than five minutes. All hope would be gone forever! But if you wanna take the risk...” Crowley teased, stepping into the room. He sauntered over to the desk, setting a few documents aside before taking a seat on the edge of it. “Talk to me.”

Aziraphale frowned, closing his eyes. “I’m nervous, beyond so, this is a big event.”

“Bigger than your failed marriage?” Crowley jokingly asked. 

“Uhg, don’t mention it, Crowley. That was a disaster, this can’t be like that.”

It had been a year since Gabriel and Aziraphale’s failed union, and things had clearly settled since then. Though the marriage fell through and Gabriel was strongly advised to not return to the kingdom anytime in the near future, the relationship between the two kingdoms was going well, to say the least. Trading was still going strong between them, and compensation for what nearly happened to Aziraphale was given in the form of a peace and trade treaty.

Crowley had been by Aziraphale’s side since then. He stayed close to Aziraphale, keeping an eye on him while performing his duties, a steady presence should Aziraphale need it.

Such as now, being a sympathetic ear for the future king as he complained and rambled about all the work that went into the transfer of power. He listened as Aziraphale talked about the last change of plans concerning the ceremony, which he did not want to have, greatly preferring a quiet transfer of power. However, it would be good for the people to see this, to understand and recognize Aziraphale as their King and for ally kingdoms to know who they would be having ties with. 

“Talk to me, Aziraphale.” Crowley spoke softly, taking on a more serious tone. “Is it the ceremony? I understand that’s something that has you more worried than I’ve seen you in a long time, but your mother said she has that all handled. Is it this? The paperwork?” He tapped the desk. “Need me to help?”

“I couldn’t ask you to help me with all this boring work.” Aziraphale shook his head.

“Aziraphale, I already do some of your paperwork for you, I’m your personal advisor! I am meant to help and guide you!”

“Some of your advice has been a little… devilish,” Aziraphale huffed, earning a wicked grin from Crowley, “and I simply can’t have you giving me some of your ‘suggestions’ to put down on paper, just because  _ you’d _ get a kick out of it.” 

“Never said you had to do anything I suggested, my friend.” Crowley chuckled, though he moved a bit closer along the desk, reaching over to place a hand on Aziraphale’s. “Are you nervous about becoming king?”

Aziraphale looked at him, his mouth tight, but he nodded. “I’m down right terrified, dear. I knew this day would come, but not so soon! My father is still well, if a bit old, I can’t imagine why he thinks I would be a better fit than him to rule over the whole kingdom! He clearly has more experience than I do. I know I’m prepared, but I’m not…” He waved his hands a bit, trying to find the right words. “I’m not ready!”

“I don’t think anyone expects you to be, Aziraphale. I’m sure your father wasn’t when he took the throne, nor your grandfather! It is a great responsibility, but you have time to adjust to your new title and duties. Besides, you’ve got your parents to turn to if you have questions, and don’t forget, you also have me here to help! I mean, I’m still learning myself, new job and all, much different from my life as a criminal, but still, I’ll do my best to help you every step of the way.”

The prince smiled a bit, leaning back in his seat. “And I am forever grateful for that, dear boy. You have no idea.”

“Heh, I think I have an idea.” Crowley slipped off the desk, moving to help Aziraphale stand. “Come on, let’s get out of the castle for a bit, hit the town! I bet Mr. Anderson is just dyin’ to show you his new wares.”

“Oh, that sounds lovely, but I’m afraid I’ve been told I can’t leave until after the ceremony.”

Crowley cocked his head a little, confused. “And why’s that?”

“Father is worried that someone could try to abduct or kill me again before I am to be crowned, I’m safer here until then.”

Crowley let out a loud, rude snort at this, much to Aziraphale’s clear displeasure. “With a Vow of protection from one of the most powerful wizards to ever exist? As if I would ever allow some lowlife to even think of killing you!”

“Weren’t you the one assigned to try and kill me just a year ago?” Aziraphale teased, smirking just a little.

“Oi! I didn’t do it, so don’t give me that, prince! Besides, I doubt anyone is gonna try another attempt on your life. You’re not engaged with a selfish prick and your people have been warming up to you well.”

Aziraphale sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I know, I know, but it’s just… it makes me feel a bit on edge, dear. Anything could happen between now and then!” He was toying with his ring, biting his lip as he started pacing around the room.

Crowley was very familiar with Aziraphale’s nervous habits now, knowing when he was about to lose control. He made his way over to his prince, standing before him and gently placing his hands on the other’s shoulders. Aziraphale stopped, looking up at him. 

“Oh dear, I’m doing it again, aren’t it?” He asked and Crowley nodded.

“Yeah, ‘fraid so, you’re gonna make yourself sick if you overthink all this, Aziraphale.”

“Can you blame me? There’s just so much, the shift between being an heir to being a King, the  _ responsibility _ , and what I heard my parents say earlier today.”

“About what?”

Aziraphale made a face, teeth clenched, so Crowley let him get his thoughts in order. “Marriage. They were speaking about marriage. Specifically about making me meet a potential husband again.”

Ah, so that was what had gotten Aziraphale in that state.

Crowley didn’t need to be a genius to understand why Aziraphale was resistant to the idea of marriage after the ordeal with Gabriel. He wasn’t exactly  _ opposed _ , he just didn’t like the idea of getting married  _ himself,  _ especially for political reasons.

And for obvious reasons, Crowley agreed with him wholeheartedly on the matter. 

“Did they talk to you about this?” Crowley asked, gently nudging Aziraphale towards the bed, making him take a seat.

“No,” The prince shook his head before looking at his hands, once more toying with his ring, “I overheard them, they didn’t seem to have noticed I was near the doors of their chambers. They said that they think it would be beneficial for the kingdom and myself, but that’s what they said about Gabriel as well, and you know how that turned out.”

“Of course.” Crowley sat down next to him, letting Aziraphale lean against him for comfort. “Don’t let it get to you.”

“How can I not? They know my feelings about the subject! I just…”

Crowley raised an eyebrow. “You just what?”

“I just… I just don’t want someone to think I’m not good enough for them. Or not live up to their expectations, or think that I will be an unreliable husband because of, well,  _ me _ . Things like that. I just fear I’ll be a problem for them, I’m not cut out for this sort of thing... I don’t want to live in fear of what my partner would do, if I were to disappoint them.”

Crowley shook his head. “Aziraphale, we talked about this before, remember? When we tried to… ya know, break my curse?”

It had been an experiment of sorts, an attempt to find what could possibly be the right vow to return Crowley to a normal person once more. Aziraphale had tried to vow to love him, but it didn’t quite work. It had been nice to hear Aziraphale say how much he cared about Crowley, and there had been a spark of something, but nothing really happened.

Crowley was fine with their relationship as it was now, romantic love was always a pleasant and obvious way to break a curse, but it wasn’t the only way, so they scratched it off the list and they decided to postpone another try until Azirapahle could properly parse through his feelings and understand what he truly wanted.

He could understand how failing to find a way to break Crowley’s curse could be yet another tally of guilt and pressure on Aziraphale’s growing list of anxiety inducing things. Crowley couldn’t ignore the guilty look on Aziraphale’s face everytime the sun set, like it was his fault that Crowley still transformed everyday. 

It wasn’t a problem, really, Crowley always told him that he was fine, he was so used to the changes by now that he didn’t really care if he was stuck with the curse for the rest of his life. But it barely dampened Aziraphale’s guilt. 

“I know, I know.” Aziraphale sighed, running his hand through his hair again. “I’ll have to talk to my parents, I want them to understand that it’s not just a whim, it makes me feel on edge just thinking about it.”

“I’m sure they’ll understand if we explain it to them.”

“Do you think they will? I know they want our kingdom to have strong and stable alliances with others, and I’m all for that, but not like this.” He shrugged Crowley’s hand off, getting up to his feet to possibly start pacing, but Crowley tugged his coat, making Aziraphale sit down once more.

“Aziraphale, it’s fine, just talk to them. There are other ways to get what they want for the Kingdom.” Crowley replied, giving his shoulder a gentle squeeze. “I’ll come with you, yeah? You don’t have to do this alone, I’ll be at your side, always.”

Aziraphale turned to look at him and smiled a little more, his body looking less tense. “Thank you, dear boy, I can always count on you. I do wish I could do the same for you.”

“What do you mean?” Crowley asked, confused, as far as he was concerned, Aziraphale was always there for him too.

“I feel like I keep taking advantage of your kindness to me, oh, don’t give me that look, you wily thief, you are kind.” Aziraphale tutted at the scowl Crowley shot him in reaction to being referred to as kind, he still had a bad boy reputation to keep up, even if he was working for Aziraphale now! “You always devote so much time and effort to me, when you really don’t need to, and you care about me so dearly that if I asked you to offer me the moon, I know you would find a way.”

Crowley took his hand, giving it a squeeze. “Aziraphale, I can always count on you. You do so much for me, just as much as I do for you, even more. I mean, come on! You took in a magical thief who worked petty jobs just to keep living another week and kept me safe in your home! Even after all the wrong and trouble I put you in! All in a single year!” Crowley let out a small laugh. “Don’t think for a second that I don’t count on you, Aziraphale. You said that you’re worried to be unreliable, but you’re not, you’ve never been. You’ve always shown me kindness and took over things I couldn’t handle myself.”

Aziraphale blinked, clearly letting this sink in. He gave Crowley’s hand a gentle squeeze in return. “Crowley, I… I guess that to you, at least, I can be reliable. I want to be there for you, and keep you safe, just as you’ve done for me this past year. Even after my coronation, I will remain by your side, as you are at mine. I will continue to care for you and will always be there to help you. I swear to you, dear boy, that I will be there for you everyday, as you are for me.”

Crowley smiled brightly at this, only to feel like something stabbed him behind his eyes, like a terrible migraine. He groaned, shutting his eyes tightly as he heard Aziraphale gasp in alarm. “Crowley?! What’s wrong?”

“Just… horrible pain, in my skull…” Crowley ground out, rubbing at his forehead. “Ffffuck, it really hurts!”

He fell back against the bed, cradling his aching head between his hands until the pain eased a little bit. He was about to sit back up when, just seconds later, a terrible wave of pain washed over his entire body, like being stabbed by tiny pins and needles. From the top of his head to the bottom of his feet, it pulsed painfully for a long minute before calming down. He felt a slight tingle under his skin, lingering around his eyes, and then it was gone. As if nothing had happened. 

“Uh, it’s gone now. That was weird.” He blinked and propped himself on his arm, looking around. He felt just slightly off, but if asked, he wouldn’t be able to explain why. He removed his shades as he sat up properly, rubbing at his eyes, before he noticed the way Aziraphale was staring at him. “What?”

“Crowley, your, uh, your eyes?” Aziraphale was gobsmacked, staring at him in awe. Crowley sent him what was no doubt a funny look before getting up. He strolled towards Aziraphale's personal vanity, looking at his reflection.

He looked perfectly normal, same thin face, same red hair, same nose, but... The pair of eyes staring back at him, were perfectly normal brown eyes. He blinked, unused to the look. He hadn’t had eyes like this since he was a child. He stuck out his tongue, trying to taste the air, but his now totally human tongue gave him nothing.

“I’m human…” He whispered, a grin splitting his face wide and bright, as he spun around to rush towards a still-startled Aziraphale. “I’m human!”

“Y-yes, dear, I can see that.” Aziraphale stuttered in shock. “Did the curse…?”

“Yes! Oh, you brilliant, fantastic prince! You did it!” 

“I’m not exactly sure what I did, but you’re welcome!” The prince's smile was nearly as bright as Crowley’s grin.

“You swore to be by my side! You meant it! I think that counts as a type of vow! Do you know what this means?”

“That you can actually join us for dinner instead of hiding in your chambers?” Aziraphale joked, getting a laugh from Crowley for it.

“YES! And I can sleep in a bed without getting cold! It will be harder to scare people like I used to do when you need a break, but I can find other ways to be a menace at night.”

Aziraphale let out a snort, rolling his eyes. “Oh, I very well know you can and will, Crowley. But I must ask, are you alright? That looked very painful.”

“It was, a bit. But it’s over now! Everything seems human, I don’t feel any lingering side effects of my snake form. It’s going to be awkward to taste and smell stuff the human way again but I’ll manage.”

“I’m happy for you, dear.” Aziraphale got up from the bed and walked around him, giving Crowley a once-over. “Not a scale or tail in sight, you look entirely human, my dear! Oh, this is so wonderful, and such a relief!”

Crowley’s face softened, smiling at the prince before him. “Same, it’s… it’s nice, ya know? I mean, we broke our curses with vows of devotion, that’s powerful magic there, prince. I’m kind of relieved it didn’t take a true love kiss because I’m not sure I could offer you one.” He added quietly.

Aziraphale gently laid a hand over his. “Yes, I believe I see what you mean. Romance isn’t really my thing either, I’m afraid. I’m happy I could finally return the favor.”

“Heh, no need to thank me, but you’re welcome. Sooooo, shall we celebrate? Sneak into the kitchen and steal some of that cherry torte the cook was makin’?”

“Well, I am feeling a bit peckish, and I heard that a delightful shipment of wine came in from Italy for the crowning ceremony. I believe no one will object if the future King samples it, don’t you think?” Aziraphale wiggled, a wicked smile coming to his lip.

“Oh? Maybe I’m a terrible advisor, I’m starting to rub off on the future King! Before we know it, he’ll be stealing all the best wine and treats in the palace, I’m too strong an influence!”

“Oh, settle down, you wily thief. I think you’re a rather good influence on me. Come along, let’s have a little bit of fun before it’s all politics and whatnot.” Azirphale laughed, stepping past him to leave his room. He looked over at Crowley, flashing him a brilliant smile, before heading down the call, calling out for him to hurry up.

Crowley stood there for a moment, looking out the windows. The sun was gone and the moon was rising, yet he still stood there, human, not crawling around on his belly on the floor. He smiled a little to himself, moving to leave the room.

Who would have thought that a simple mistake on the job could lead to all of this? Crowley would be forever thankful for what he did that day in the woods, and he was sure Aziraphale was the same.

Their laughter echoed along the halls as they made their way to the kitchen. The Cook and servants set up a table for them in a quiet corner with a fond roll of their eyes and as the moon rose outside, they raised their glasses in a toast.

“To the world?”

“To the world.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for reading and enjoying this story!


End file.
